Pulled Apart
by SonicCrazyGal
Summary: (Sequel to In This Together) The Stein family had come a long way since their days trapped in the studio, enjoying their freedom and the new lives they've made for themselves. But everything isn't as perfect as it seems and the darkness is creeping back into their lives. They should have known the Liar wasn't done with them yet.
1. Chapter 1

**The Perfect Day**

Henry smiled as he leaned back slightly, his hands resting on the soft green grass behind him. It was a beautiful sunny day with barely any clouds in the sky and a pleasant breeze blowing through, so of course, those of the Stein household were at the park enjoying a picnic together as well as a few other neighborhood families. The toons were running around in their disguises and playing with the neighborhood kids, having a great time as they chased each other. Allison and Tom had decided to join them today as well and they were with Sammy and Norman, talking with the other adults and making more food for anyone that was still hungry. Linda leaned against Henry, laying her head on his shoulder. Henry wrapped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a quick kiss on her head. Sharing a smile, the two turned back to watching their toon children playing, eyes sparkling with happiness.

It's been a little over a year since Henry escaped the Studio with all the others and everyone had come a long way. There had been a lot of hardships along the way, from suffering flashbacks and panic attacks to dealing with new abilities and angry mobs. But there had been even more good times as the toons and ink creatures had healed. They had all learned to accept what they had become and overcome the suffering they had gone through. They had become close as friends and family as they helped each other cope, staying together through both the good and the bad. And seeing the joy of the toons as they experienced all the amazing things the world had to offer them outside of the studio always brought a smile to Henry's face and filled him with satisfaction that everything had been worth it.

"Everything is so wonderful," Linda sighed happily, snuggling closer to Henry and into his warm embrace. "While I never expected to have more children, especially toon children, I am so happy we do have them. Just look at them all, smiling and laughing. You would never be able to guess what they've gone through."

"I'll admit when I got Joey's letter, I'd never guess this is how things would have turned out," Henry replied, eyes darkening ever so slightly as he thought back to what he went through. "All that time stuck in the loops, forced to fight and kill each other, but we made it through… And while it hasn't been easy, I wouldn't give it up for anything. I would do anything for our toons, even go through it all again."

"I know how you feel," Linda agreed. They turned to each other and started leaning closer…

"DAD!"

Linda couldn't help but laugh as a familiar toon demon suddenly tackled Henry, knocking him flat on his back. Henry gasped as the wind was briefly knocked out him before he offered the toon a smile, "What's up my little Ink Demon?"

"You have to come and play with us," Bendy said, grinning down at Henry from where he was sitting on his chest. "You and mom have been sitting here long enough! Come on dad!"

"Alright, alright" Henry laughed, sitting up while Bendy crawled around Henry's body and onto his shoulders.

"Careful Bendy, you're tail's out," Linda chastised lightly, making sure no one else had noticed yet. "You need to hide it."

"But everyone here already knows about us," Bendy pouted, his tail lazily swishing back and forth behind him as he looked at Linda with his big eyes, the yellow parts sparkling slightly. "Can't I just leave it? And maybe get to use my wings as well…"

"You know the rules," Linda gently shook her head, offering a small smile as Bendy drooped sadly. "You never know when someone that doesn't know could be passing by…"

"Fine…" Bendy grumbled in disappointment. He closed his eyes for a second and his tail melted back into his body.

"There you go," Linda assured, adjusting Bendy's hat to make sure his horns were covered. "And if you are extra careful for the rest of our time here, you'll get a big dessert tonight!"

"Deal!" Bendy beamed before focusing back on Henry. "Come on dad! We're 'it' and we have to go catch the others!"

Henry just chuckled and obliged the demon, joining the others in their game. Linda laughed at their antics before she ended up being dragged in as well. They spent a few more hours, just having fun in the sun, playing all sorts of games from playing tag to watching the clouds and telling each other what they saw. Saying goodbye to the neighborhood kids, the Stein family headed home.

Once inside, all the toons and ink creatures shed their disguises and passed the time in idle chatter. The two couples were busy making dinner in the kitchen (and fending off the occasional toon trying to sneak a snack) while Sammy and Norman watched over the toons, playing music and movies to help keep the toons entertained and calm. Dinner was a lively affair as it usually was with a houseful of toons followed by ice cream for dessert (of which Bendy did get an extra scoop). The group found their way into the backyard to watch the sunset, the toons still in awe as the sky was painted many colors.

They talked for a little while longer before some of the toons started to fall asleep. The Butcher Gang was nodding off in a pile around Linda's feet While Bendy was curled up on Henry's lap, purring softly along with the cat in his arms. Figuring that it was time to turn in for the night, Tom and Alice said goodbye and left for their own home. The adults helped the toons get into bed with Henry and Linda tucking them all in. As Henry settled down himself, a smile was on his face as he pulled Linda close.

Today had truly been a perfect day…

**AN: I plan to update this story every other week and don't let this chapter fool you. This story is going to get dark and it's going to get dark fast. **


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: This does take place after New Day New Challenges and while that series is still in progress, all the important plot stories have already been posted. **

It was a quiet peaceful night, with a new moon allowing all the stars nearby to glitter brighter. But within the Stein household. Henry tossed and turned in his bed. Sweat beaded his forehead as memories and visions of the horrors he faced in the Studio plagued his mind. He eventually awoke with a gasp, though he kept his eyes firmly close fearing he'd see the sketched walls of his old workshop turned prison. Taking deep breaths, Henry used his other senses to ground himself to the world around him, the soft sheets and bed bean the his finger, the comforting and warm weight of Linda bedside him, the smell of flowers from the garden outside with only the barest hint of ink that comes from having a house full of toons. Calming down, Henry became aware of the sound of soft footsteps coming towards his side of the bed.

"Bendy?" Henry whispered, wondering if the little Ink Demon had seen his negative emotions and had come to see what was wrong. Opening his eyes, Henry did not see the little toon, but a much taller figure, one wearing a disturbingly familiar Bendy mask.

"Sammy?" Henry asked in concern and slightly worrying, sitting up slightly and preparing himself in the likely event Sammy was suffering a relapse. Sammy looked strange. The ink stains on his skin seemed to have grown and were glistening as if they were made of fresh ink while there seemed to be a sight glow from behind Sammy's mask.

"Sheep…Sheep…Sheep… It's time for sleep," Sammy said as the "Prophet", his voice distorted. Sammy raised his arms and Henry could see the slight gleam of an ax in his hands. Henry reacted instantly and rolled to the other side of the bed, barely avoiding the ax cutting into the mattress where he had been and starling Linda awake.

"Henry? What's going-" Linda wasn't able to finish her question as Henry jumped to his feet and pulled her with him.

"Sammy's suffering a relapse," Henry explained as he grabbed one of the axes he had hidden in his room (a habit he was now grateful he hadn't been able to kick) and turned to face Sammy, standing protectively in front of Linda.

"I'm going to wipe that smile right off of your face," Sammy growled as he charged at Henry, holding his ax high before bringing it down towards Henry's head. Henry blocked Sammy's ax with his own and kicked the ink man, sending Sammy stumbling back.

"Come on," Henry said, using this chance to lead Linda out of the room. "Hopefully Boris can…"

"Well if it isn't my little errand boy…" a sickeningly sweet voice said, making Henry's blood run cold. Henry and Linda looked to the side to see Alice and Boris standing not far down the hall from them. Alice's right eye was glowing brightly, while the left one had lost the familiar yellow dot and was dripping ink. The scar on her cheek seemed to have expanded while a new one had appeared across her throat, both dripping ink. Her halo, which normally glowed and floated slightly above her head, was dull and sunk in slightly into her hair on one side.

But even more disturbing than Alice was Boris. One eye was glowing brightly while the other was 'X'ed out and dripping ink. His hands were far larger than normal and there seemed to be ink dripping from an unseen wound on his chest, bits of white that could only be bone poking out through his fur. Henry couldn't help but be filled with fear and concern at seeing his toons in this twisted state. Relapses could sometimes cause slight alterations to the toon suffering from it, but never to this horrifying extent. Added to the fact that they rarely had several people from relapses at the same time, Henry knew that there was something very very wrong…

Unfortunately, Henry didn't have time to figure what was going on as Alice gave him a malicious smile and said, "Meet the new and improved Boris! Boris, tear him apart! Leave nothing!"

Boris let out a roar which seemed to shake the house and charged forward with thundering footsteps. Henry pulled Linda to the side and Boris went barreling past them, crashing into Sammy and causing them both to fall farther into Henry and Linda's room. Henry grabbed the surprised Alice and threw her into the room as well, slamming the door behind her. Henry could hear Alice screeching in anger and Sammy shouting, but Henry paid it no mind. He took Linda by the hand and hurried away from the three currently very dangerous ink creatures.

"What's going on?" Linda asked in worry, staying close to Henry as they went. "I've never seen them like that, even when they've relapsed."

"This is not a normal relapse," Henry replied, leading them downstairs as quickly as they could. "I don't know what's going on, but we have to get out of here. We're only going to be killed if we stay with so many…"

A loud screech cut Henry off and the couple was blinded as a bright light shown upon them. Relying on pure instinct, Henry pulled Linda to the side, feeling a breeze as they escaped the Projectionist's grasp. Henry's heart skipped a beat as he realized he and Linda were now trapped in the living room with nowhere to escape. He pushed Linda behind him, both backing up against the far wall as the light of the Projectionist came through the doorway.

The Projectionist let out another screech and started to charge again when the room suddenly got a lot darker. inky shadows spread across every surface as a giant black portal began to appear on the wall, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. Henry felt his heart begin to race as he watched the portal grow to full size.

The Ink Demon had arrived…


	3. Chapter 3

**Beware the Ink Demon**

Those in the living room were still as the tall looming figure of the Ink Demon started to emerge from the portal. Henry only caught a glimpse of the disturbingly familiar grin before the Projectionist screeched and the two charged at each other. The Ink Demon threw the first punch, hitting the Projectionist in the head and leaving a dent. The Projectionist screeched in anger and returned with his own, landing a blow in the demon's chest that barely phased him.

Henry swallowed thickly as he saw the two duke it out, knowing there was only one way this could end. But this wasn't the studio and if Norman died… there wouldn't be any rebirth from the ink for him. Henry started to take a step forward, to do what he didn't know, but Linda's hand on his arm stopped him. He looked over to see her frightened face and Henry felt his heart clenched realized he had to make a choice. If he tried to break up the fight, he would likely end up dead which would leave Linda vulnerable to all the ink creatures here.

"Come on," Henry whispered, ignoring the growing guilt in his heart. With the two biggest current threats focused on each other, Henry used the opportunity to start sneaking around the fighting creatures towards the entryway.

"Henry," Linda whispered in confusion, her attention still on the fighting pair. "I thought Bendy only got his wings and tail after you escaped the studio…"

"What do you mean?" Henry wondered, looking over at the Ink Demon. It was hard to see in the darkness, but as the Projectionist's light briefly lit up the Ink Demon's form, Henry could see Bendy's wings half furled around him with his tail lashing around behind him. Henry couldn't help but wonder at the sight. Whenever Bendy had relapsed, he always returned to his Ink Demon form even after he had discovered his Ink Devil form. As Henry and Linda watched, Bendy's mouth opened, showing all his sharp teeth, and bit down on the Projectionist's shoulder. The couple flinched back at seeing the brutality of the attack, but Henry saw that Bendy was aiming to incapacitate not kill. Is it possible that Bendy had been able to avoid whatever was affect the others?

The Projectionist let out a pained screech and was knocked to the ground under the weight of the Ink Devil still biting into him. Punching the Projectionist in the head one last time, leaving him dazed, the Ink Devil stood up and looked over at them with his one showing eye. Henry wanted to believe that Bendy was still on his side, but he couldn't be sure, keeping Linda behind him and his ax in front just in case the Ink Devil tried to attack them.

"Bendy?" Henry questioned, gazing at the Ink Devil for any sign of aggressiveness towards him or Linda.

_**"…Dad…"**_ Bendy replied, immediately making Henry's shoulders sag in relief and a small smile come to his face at knowing at least Bendy was still with him. But that relief didn't last long as Henry was reminded of the situation when Bendy shouted, _**"Look out!"**_

Henry acted instantly, shoving both himself and Linda to the side as Bendy charged forward, claws outstretched. Looking back, Henry could see Bendy grab onto Sammy who had come down the stairs and had been about to attack the couple from behind. Bendy easily ripped the ax from Sammy's hands, melting it back into ink which was absorbed into the Ink Devil's form.

"No my Lord!" Sammy begged as the Ink Devil lifted him into the air. "I am your prophet! I am your-"

Bendy ignored Sammy's babbling and flung him across the hall and into the kitchen. Sammy slammed hard into the Butcher Gang who had just started coming out of the kitchen, carrying all sorts of utensils as makeshift weapons. The four landed in a pile of tangled limbs, cartoon noises and sickening gurgles coming from them as they shouted angerly at each other, working against each other as they tried to pull themselves free. In any other circumstance, it would have been funny, but there was no humor to be found in the scene though as Alice and Boris started coming downstairs and the Projectionist rose to his feet, the arm the Ink Devil had been hanging uselessly at his side.

Bendy stood protectively in front of Linda and Henry as the three of them were backed into a corner of the living room. The Ink Devil let out a menacing growl while barring his teeth at all the others, which caused all the approaching threats to pause and eye him with a mix of anger and fear, reminding them just how dangerous the demon was. They were currently at a stalemate, but one that would obviously not last long as all of the ink creatures seemed to be getting into attack stances.

"Bendy, we need to get out of here!" Henry said urgently, gripping his ax tightly as he stared at all the others. Even with the Ink Devil on their side, they were far outnumbered. Plus Henry and Bendy would be holding back to not hurt their friends and family, something the others would have no reservations within their current state. There was just no way they would be able to win like this. Bendy seemed to know this as he nodded in agreement and a portal began to form in the wall next to Henry.

The ink creatures took this as their cue to attack and began to charge at the group. But they were two slow as the Ink Devil, scooped up Henry and Linda into his arms and dived through the portal, shutting immediately behind them. The ink creatures shrieked and shouted in frustration, splitting up to explore the house for any sign of their target.


	4. Chapter 4

**Retreat**

The Ink Devil came out of his portal into a small ally way between houses a couple of buildings away from his home. As soon as they were safely through, the Ink Devil set the couple down and backed away from them until his back hit the opposite wall. His arms were wrapped around himself while his wings twitched, seeming to be stuck between wanting to wrap the Ink Devil in a protective cocoon and flying away. His tail lashed around behind him while his eye pulsed, dimming and glowing brightly randomly.

"Bendy?" Henry asked carefully, taking only a small step forward. Henry had seen Bendy take this exact same pose before during the last loop in the studio. Right after Henry had destroyed all the cutouts, Bendy had been trying to hold himself back from attacking Henry. Bendy had failed to initially stop himself then and Henry really hoped the Ink Devil wouldn't fail now as he was so much stronger than in the studio and Linda was now a very easy target.

_**"…Stay…stay back…"**_ Bendy said, flinching away from Henry and wrapping his wings around himself.

"Bendy…" Henry said calmly, taking another step closer to Bendy while Linda watched the two anxiously. "I know you're fighting against whatever is affecting you and the others and I know you won't hurt me. Please, Bendy… tell me what's going on."

_**"…Control…"**_ Bend eventually forced out, staying still as Henry continued to approach. **_"…The Liar… is taking control… "_**

"Joey… I should have known…" Henry scowled, though he made sure to keep the anger out of his voice. The last thing Bendy needed in his currently fragile state was to think Henry was mad at him. Henry was angry at Joey for doing this to his family, but a part of him was angry at himself.

When they first left Joey's apartment, there had been a part of Henry that had wondered if he was doing the right thing by just leaving Joey alone. But he had been more focused on getting home to Linda and getting everyone else away from Joey. Then with having to help everyone recover and move on, Henry had completely put Joey from his mind. And any time he did think about his former friend, he always assumed that he lost everything and would be forced to give up any mad schemes he could have left. But Henry should have known better. Joey had held a grudge against Henry for 30 years just because Henry rather have a family then chase after an impossible dream. What was one little year compared to that, especially when this time Henry had completely humiliated Joey by destroying his whole little ink world?

"Do you know how Joey is taking control?" Henry asked, gently placing his hand between Bendy's horns. Henry was surprised to feel wet ink beneath his hand. As he took a closer look at Bendy, he realized his Ink Devil form was a lot less solid looking and seemed to be dripping a lot of ink. He looked like a mix between his Ink Devil form and the original Ink Demon form, showing just how much Bendy was fighting to stay in control.

_**"… Magic… ink… circles… amplifying… spell…"**_ Bendy tried to explain, though Henry had very little idea what the demon was talking about. **_"All around… forcing us back… back to how we acted…orders… orders to capture… capture you and return… return to the Liar…"_**

"Do you think you'll be able to stay in control?" Henry asked, cradling Bendy's head in his hands and gently stroking the dripping ink away from his face. Henry hated asking this question, but he had to know. If Bendy couldn't fight of Joey's influence, Henry would be forced to leave Bendy so he could stop Joey.

_**"…I… I think so…"**_ Bendy finally said, unfurling his wings and collapsing against Henry. Henry held the Ink Devil close as he sobbed.**_ "I'm sorry… I'm sorry...my fault… I saw shadows… warnings…Things weren't quite right… I should have known… should have realized… should have prevented… my fault… should have done something…"_**

Bendy felt terrible for what was going on. Ever since he discovered his powers to see souls, he would occasionally see shadows on the souls of his friends and family. He had thought they were strange but had assumed they were just representations of the trauma and flashbacks that were brought to the surface during those times it appeared. He should have realized something more was going on. Should have realized that his instincts going wild whenever he came into contact with a soul covered in shadow was the same as to what happened to him in the Studio. If he had just looked a little closer, maybe he could have stopped this from happening.

"Ssshhh…Bendy…Ssshhh…" Henry whispered, rubbing Bendy's back as he assured the demon. "This wasn't your fault. This is Joey's fault. It's always been Joey's fault. His greed and selfishness are driving him to hurt us, but we can stop him. We've done it before and we can do it again. The others might be suffering under Joey's control right now, but we are still family. We are still in this together."

Bendy's sobs died down under Henry's comforting words and even gave Henry a small smile. Linda smiled at the touching scene and took a step forward when a sudden noise startled them. A small familiar black creature came rushing in the ally and jumped the Ink Devil, scrambling up until she rested between Bendy's horns.

**_"Ink Blot?"_** Bendy said in surprise, reaching up and taking the cat off his head. **_"What are you…"_**

Bendy cut off when they spotted a familiar beam of light approaching the side of the alleyway. Bendy gave Ink Blot to Henry, grabbing both him and Linda. With a flap of his wings, the Ink Devil launched them into the air. The Ink Devil landed them on the roof just as the Projectionist turned and started walking down the alleyway, searching for them.

"You weren't kidding about orders to capture me," Henry grimaced as they watched the Projectionist walk by below them. "What about everyone else in town? Are they in danger?"

**_"No,"_** Bendy replied, with a slight shake of his head, his gaze never leaving the potential threat below them.**_ "The orders to capture you are their driving purpose right now. If it wasn't for that, the others might have turned on each other."_**

"What are we going to do?" Linda whispered in worry, holding on tightly to Henry.

"We need to stop Joey," Henry replied. "But we're going to need help if Joey has all the others under control. We should see if Allison and Tom can help. Even if they are acting as they did in the Studio, they should still be allies."

"But won't they have the same orders to capture you?" Linda asked, holding close to Henry as if she was worried he'd be snatched from her.

"We won't know until we get there," Henry said. "We'll just have to be cautious. Please take us to them, Bendy."

With a nod, Bendy held Henry and Linda close, flying off into the night.


	5. Chapter 5

**Finding Sanctuary**

Even when carrying two adults and a cat, Bendy could still fly very fast. It only took him a few minutes to arrive at the Connor's home and Bendy landed softly at the edge of the clearing, keeping their distance for the moment.

"Bendy, can you tell if Allison and Tom are like the others or not?" Henry asked once he and Linda were standing firmly on the grass. "Are they going to try and capture me the moment they see me?"

**"No,"** Bendy replied as he studied the souls of Tom and Allison, petting Ink Blot who stayed in his arms. **"There is a shadow on their souls, but it's not engulfing them like the others, probably because there are no magic circles here…"**

"You mentioned magic circles before… what do you mean by that?" Henry asked, relaxing slightly at knowing they weren't in immediate danger.

**"Magic ritual circles, like those painted around the studio,"** Bendy explained, turning his attention to Henry. **"Depending on what kind of circle is drawn, it can have different effects. Somehow several had been painted around our home to amplify the Liar's spell, making sure everyone in the house would be firmly in his hold. I was lucky I had just landed on the roof when they activated…"**

Bendy couldn't help but shiver when he thought about how close he had been to becoming just like the others, becoming a bloodthirsty puppet for the Liar once more. Even though Bendy could sense ink, it had been impossible for him to know the circles were there until it was too late. He and all the other ink creatures had left traces of ink in practically every inch of the house so Bendy didn't pick up the circles until they were activated. He knew he was very lucky he had been out flying later than usual and was only caught not outskirts of the amplified spell's range. If he had been asleep like he was supposed, with a circle he now knew was painted under his bed, Bendy knew he would be exactly like the others. Even on the outskirts like he had been, he had barely been able to remain himself….

"And if there aren't any circles here," Henry continued, bringing Bendy out of his thoughts. "Allison and Tom won't have Joey's orders like the others and we should be able to get them to help us."

**"They might need some convincing, but the Liar's spell is a lot weaker out here. It's even starting to lose some of it's hold on me,"** Bendy confirmed, even managing a small relieved smile. While Bendy could still feel the effects of Joey's magic on his mind, trying to bring all his more demonic traits to the surface, they were a lot easier to push back. He no longer felt like he was constantly fighting to stay in control and felt a lot more confident that he won't fall victim to the Liar again.

"Then let's go get their help and free the rest of our family," Linda concluded' beginning to march towards the front door only to be held back by Henry.

"Wait a moment honey," Henry said as he turned to Bendy. "Is there any way you'll be able to turn back into your toon form? It'll be easier to convince them if they don't find the "Ink Demon" on their doorstep."

**"I can try…"** Bendy replied uncertainly, focusing inward. It wasn't easy, as not only was the Liar's spell still influencing him to an extent but Bendy's own feelings of being in danger made it hard to try and force himself into a smaller and more vulnerable form. But after several minutes, Bendy felt himself shrink down though he was unable to completely revert to his toon form. His wings and tail were still present, his gloves clawed, and ink was still dripping to cover one eye.

"This is the best I can do," Bendy sighed as he looked over his half transformed state.

"Don't worry, you did a great job," Linda assured, hugging Bendy. "No matter what you look like, the real you within all your ink is the only one we care about. And with everything going on, I'm glad you're still with us."

"Thank you," Bendy murmured, returning her hug while Henry came over and rubbed the toon between his horns.

"Linda, can you carry Bendy? It'll help him seem less threatening as I talk to Allison and Tom," Henry suggested. Linda nodded, picking the toon up. She manured him so he was resting on her hip while Ink Blot settled further into Bendy's arms. Bendy leaned his head into Linda's shoulder, his tail wrapping around her waist and his wings folding around himself as a comfort and a subconscious shield as they approached the cabin's door.

Henry knocked on the door twice before it was flung open, Allison appearing at the entrance and immediately holding her sword at Henry's throat. Tom could be seen standing close behind her, holding an ax and glaring at everyone in suspicion.

"Who are you!" Allison demanded, glaring at Henry with eyes glowing very dimly."How did you find our safe house!"

"Allison, it's me… Henry…" Henry replied calmly, holding up his hands to show he was unarmed. "I promise I'm not here to hurt you. I helped you and Tom get out of the Studio. Do you remember that?"

"I…" Allison began, hesitating while Tom growled over her shoulder. Henry waited as Allison seemed to lose some of her hostility. "I… I think I do remember… Henry… the Creator… What's going on?"

"It's a long story…" Henry sighed, smiling in relief as Allison put her sword away. "And we're going to need your help."

"Alright… explain…" Allison said, moving aside from the door and dragging Tom with her. Henry and Linda, still carrying Bendy, hurried inside with the door shutting tightly behind them.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: I wrote a lot for this story this last week so I decided to post a chapter this week, but It'll be two weeks as usual until the next one... have fun... MWAHAHA**

**The Illusion of Safety**

"What is that?!" Allison gasped in shock when she finally caught sight of Bendy as Linda went past her, tightening her grip on her sword. "It looks like… it looks like the Ink Denton…"

"He's safe…" Henry assured calmly, stepping between Allison and Linda just to be safe. "I know you are probably going to have a hard time believing me, but he's not here to hurt you… We need your help…"

"You said you're going to explain what's going on," Allison replied tensely, refusing to drop her defensive stance as Tom growled beside her. "So explain!"

"Bendy and I helped everyone escape from the Studio," Henry reminded, unfazed by the sword pointed at him. "We've all been able to have happy lives since then. But now the one who trapped us all in the first place, Joey Drew, is doing something that's making everyone act like they did in the Studio, but Bendy was able to resist the spell and it isn't affecting you two as strongly as it is the others. We can use this to our advantage and stop Joey."

"I… I believe you…." Allison admitted after a long pause, finally lowering her sword though Tom was still tense. "I don't know how exactly, but I know you're telling the truth. Please….sit…. We should probably start planning what we're going to do before things get more out of hand."

"Thank you," Henry smiled in relief. Henry, Linda, and Bendy sank onto their couch while Tom and Allison sat down in chairs across from them. As the adults began to discuss and plan, Bendy found it incredibly hard to keep his eyes open. He hadn't slept yet that night and it had taken a lot of energy both mentally and physically to fight off both the Liar and the others. Now that they weren't in immediate danger, his exhaustion was catching up to him.

"It's alright my little Ink Demon," Linda whispered when she noticed Bendy's tiredness. "You've done so much tonight to keep us safe, you deserve some sleep. Go on…. I'll watch over you and wake you when we're ready."

Yawing and giving Linda a small nod, Bendy leaned his head against her shoulder. Holding Ink Blot, Bendy let the comforting sounds of Linda's heartbeat and Henry's voice wash over him as his eyes drifted closed.

A sharp piercing pain shot through Bendy's mind, tearing through his thoughts and jolting him to wakefulness. He cried out in agony and scrambled backward in an attempt to get away from the pain, dislodging something from his lap and finding himself falling to the floor. One hand gripped his head while the other clawed the floor. All around him, Bendy could hear voices and shouting, but he couldn't focus enough to make out what they were saying. All his attention was turned inward and what was happening inside his own mind.

Bendy knew that somehow the Liar had figured out the devil hadn't fallen under his control, so now he was using his magic to attack Bendy directly. Bendy could feel the magic attaching to him like a parasite, searching for weaknesses to dig into, stirring up all his negative emotions and old bloodlust, trying to scramble his conscious mind and make him a monster to manipulate and point toward targets to destroy. Bendy was fighting against it with all his might and his body reflected his internal struggle. Various limbs would start to grow only to melt back down, his wings and tail would absorb into his body only to reform a moment later, and his inky shadows would start to fill the room before retreating back to the space immediately around him.

Something warm and gentle suddenly touched Bendy's head. Bendy nearly attacked it before he realized it was his Creator.

"Bendy… I know you can fight whatever's going on," Henry assured gently, rubbing the space between Bendy's horns. "You're strong, but you don't have to go through this alone. I'm here for you… Just tell me what I can do to help."

Bendy wanted to tell his Creator to run, to tell him to leave him and get somewhere safe, but he couldn't even focus enough to form words. He reverted back to his original way of communicating, letting out pained whines and fearful whistles.

"I'm not leaving you," Henry replied firmly. Henry couldn't understand what Bendy was saying, but he knew his little Ink Demon well enough to guess. "You were able to fight Joey's influence in the Studio where he had nearly complete control and I know you can fight him off now. You are strong and I'm not talking about how you can punch through metal doors when you want to. Despite all you suffered in the studio, you still managed to hold onto your true toon self. You might be a deadly predator, but you have the biggest heart I've ever seen. Nothing could change it and nothing will. And if you can't believe in yourself, believe in me. Because I am your Creator and I know you inside and out. You can fight off Joey and we'll save the rest of our family. Together."

Ink ran down Bendy's face though the demon wasn't sure if that was just normal ink or if tears were mixed in. Either way, Bendy was grateful to have such a loving Creator and found strength in what he said. With renewed determination, Bendy pushed back against the magic that was trying to spread through his ink. Whether it was seconds or an eternity, Bendy couldn't tell, but slowly he managed to fight back the Liar's invasion. He could feel the Liar respond by first trying to attack more viscously, but when he couldn't make more progress, started to retreat.

The Liar wasn't giving up, as Bendy knew all too well that the Liar would pursue his goals no matter the cost, but the attack lessened considerably. Either the Liar's attention was focused elsewhere or, more likely in Bendy's opinion, he was waiting for Bendy to drop his guard. Still, Bendy could relax slightly and finally focus on his surroundings. Henry was kneeling in front of him, watching with worry. Bendy attempted to give him a reassuring smile before he realized he had his huge grin plastered on his face.

Bendy was about to focus on changing his mouth back to normal when the movement behind Henry caught his attention. Glancing up, the toon devil saw Tom coming up to stand behind Henry. Bendy's ink ran cold when he realized the shadow had completely covered Tom's soul, knowing that meant the Liar now had complete control of him. Seeing Tom raise his robotic fist, Bendy let out a sharp high pitched whistle a warning. But it was too late as the partial wolf slammed his first against the side of Henry's head.


	7. Chapter 7

**Unleashed**

Henry immediately crumpled to his side, knocked out cold from Tom's robotic fist. Seeing his Creator slumped on the ground, blood running down the side of his face, caused something inside Bendy to snap. All his negative emotions, his rage, his hatred, and his bloodlust, that he'd been struggling to keep contained, burst forth like a waterfall, filling his entire being. His body transformed immediately, becoming tall and lanky. Ink dripped down his face, covering both his eyes and leaving only his wide grin full of sharp teeth visible. His fingers grew into deadly claws, his tail melted away completely. His wings became even more insubstantial and looked far more ragged, barely distinct from the ink shadows that flooded the room.

He wasn't Bendy anymore or even the Ink Devil… he was the Ink Demon. And how dare that wolf attack what was his! How dare he! Well… the Ink Demon would just have to remind that stupid dog why you never messed with what was his!

The Ink Demon growled and lunged at the partial wolf who was quickly backing away from him. Something slammed into the Ink Demon from behind, knocking him over in his currently unbalanced state. The Ink Demon quickly rolled onto all fours into a crouched stance to recover and glanced up in time to see Allison slash at him with her sword. He wasn't able to move out of the way quickly enough, getting a deep cut in his side. The Ink Demon hissed in pain and swiped at Allison, but she was already jumping back out of his reach, causing his claws to only slash air.

So the angel wanted to protect her dog? No matter… the Ink Demon had no problem reminding her why it was foolish to stand against him. Why he was the most feared being in the Studio.

Rising to his full height, the Ink Demon growled and lunged for the angel. Allison brought her sword up to defend herself, but the Ink Demon was prepared for that and grabbed the sword. Using one hand to yank the sword from her grip and tossing it aside, Allison was left monetarily vulnerable which the Ink Demon took advantage of by striking out with his other hand. The angel screamed in pain as the Ink Demon's claws cut into her chest, but the Ink Demon didn't even flinch at the sound. He grabbed onto her throat, lifting her into the air before throwing her across the room, her body knocking over several pieces of furniture before slamming into the wall.

With that distraction out of his way, the Ink Demon turned his attention back to the object of his rage. The wolf was apparently eager to die as he was charging at the Ink Demon, most likely trying to avenge the injured angel. The Ink Demon didn't react as the wolf's ax buried itself in his shoulder, grabbing Tom's robotic arm in a vice grip while plunging his other hand into the wolf's chest. The Ink Demon reached beyond the physical and latched onto the soul within.

The Ink Demon planned to rip out the wolf's soul and devour it whole. That would teach the stupid dog the cost of attacking what was his… of harming his Creator…

His Creator…

Henry…

Dad…

The rage and bloodlust drained out of Bendy as he realized what he was doing. He was about to kill Tom, someone he usually considered family. And even though everything inside of him screamed and howled that he should finish off the partial wolf for what he had done to what was precious to the Ink Demon, Bendy knew his Creator would not want him to do this. Henry would not want him to cross that line, to become a true monster, for his sake.

Letting out a panicked whine, Bendy released Tom's soul and removed his hand from the wolf's chest. Bendy stumbled back, desperately forcing himself back into his half toon state. He needed to make sure he didn't fall under the Liar's control and being as toon as possible helped him with that. But while he was stronger at resisting the Liar's influence in a mostly toon form, he was vulnerable to the now much taller partial wolf.

Tom recovered far quicker than should be possible for someone who nearly had his soul ripped out, so Bendy was unprepared for his wing to be grabbed by Tom's robotic fist. Now Bendy had never really pondered over the anatomy of his wings, as they were made of ink and magic like the rest of him. He wasn't even sure his body had bones most of the time let alone his wings which seemed more like solid shadows than anything else. But something in them defiantly snapped and shattered as Tom crushed it in his strong robotic grasp.

Bendy screeched in pain, tears streaming down his face as he weakly tried to reach behind for the metallic limb in an attempt to pry his wing free. Bendy screeched again as Tom lifted him up by the crushed wing still clenched in his grasp and tossed him aside. Bendy crashed into the wall, hard enough to damage his good wing and sending waves of agony through the crushed one. Bendy slumped to the ground in a pained dazed, every twitch of his wings sending renewed pain rocking through his body.

The sounds of footsteps made Bendy push past the pain to lift his head to see what was going on. Both Tom and Allison were up and moving, but they weren't coming towards the fallen demon. Instead, Bendy realized with horror, they were approaching the still unconscious Henry.

No! Bendy could not let the Liar get his hands on the Creator! He had to do something!

With a surge of desperation and power, Bendy stretched out with his hand. His inky shadows shot forward from underneath him directly towards Henry. Allison and Tom stepped back in surprise at seeing the Creator suddenly covered and were shocked to see his body start to sink into the shadows. They tried to lunge forward and grab him, but it was too late.

Henry was gone.


	8. Chapter 8

**Stalemate**

"NO!" Allison shouted while Tom growled beside her, desperately running her hands along the spot Henry disappeared to in a vain attempt to get him. Bendy sighed in relief and let his hand fall to the floor as his ink shadows evaporated. He had managed to get his Creator to a safe place, one that only Bendy could reach from here. Bendy's head dropped to the floor as the pain of his injuries once again made themselves known and threatened to pull him into unconsciousness.

Bendy's horns twitched as he heard someone approaching him and he forced himself to turn his head. Allison was standing above him, holding her sword that she must have retrieved when Bendy wasn't looking. Bendy couldn't help but let out a fearful whimper as seeing her cruel smile and cold eyes, a look that was very wrong and unnatural on the normally kind angel. Ink still dripped from the claw marks on her chest though they were healing faster than they should.

"So you think you're clever with that little trick," Allison mocked before driving her sword through the middle of Bendy's still outstretched hand. Bendy cried out in pain, instinctually trying to tug his hand away, but immediately stopped as it only made the wound worse.

"I should probably demand you bring him back before I make the pain worse," Allison remarked cruelly, twisting the sword and getting more cries from Bendy. "But I doubt you'd comply. But don't worry, we have other ways of getting what the Master wants."

Allison twisted the sword one last time, digging it into the floor beneath before letting go of it, leaving it holding Bendy's hand down. She stepped back from the pinned demon and it was only then that Bendy could see that Tom was carrying an unconscious Linda.

Bendy had completely forgotten about Linda with everything that had been happening and hadn't realized she had been knocked out. He could only guess that Allison did it while Tom knocked out Henry. Bendy hissed in warning, trying to get up to save her, but between the sword in his hand, his injured wings, and the slashes he had gotten from his fight with them, the pain almost immediately made Bendy crumple back to the floor.

"What should we do about him?" Tom asked, nodding to the demon as Bendy struggled to keep from passing out.

"Leave him," Allison concluded, barely glancing at the injured toon. "He'll either tell the Creator where his wife disappeared to or submit to the will of the Master and deliver the Creator personally. Either way, the Master will have the Creator."

Bendy growled and whistled at the leaving trio, trying to find some way to get them to leave Linda alone. But between his injuries and his exhaustion, Bendy didn't have enough energy to risk transforming and make himself more vulnerable to the Liar's magic. So with a growing feeling of failure and hopelessness, Bendy watched the two half toons leave.

It would have been so easy to let himself pass out then, but Bendy forced himself to stay awake. He waited as long as he could, making sure Allison and Tom weren't coming back, before sending his ink shadows to seal the door shut. Once that task was complete, Bendy turned his attention to the spot where Henry disappeared. Not far from it, there was a black book hidden amongst the derbies of the fight. Sending his inky shadows and power towards it, Bendy forced the book open and it began to glow. The book shined brightly before going out suddenly, leaving Henry laying beside it still unconscious.

Bendy panted as he let the last dregs of his power fade. It was hard to open his passage between the pages from such a distance, but it was worth it to keep Henry safe. But as much as Bendy wanted to leave Henry in his sanctuary and find some way to rescue the others himself, Bendy was forced to admit it was impossible. He was too injured to do anything any time soon and there was still the possibility he'd fall under the Liar's control.

Hoping that Henry would be able to come with a plan and that he wouldn't fall under the liar's control while he was unconscious, Bendy let himself succumb to the darkness.

Henry was no stranger to being knocked unconscious, as the studio had literally beaten it into his head hundreds of times. So when Henry awoke with a throbbing ache in his head, Henry could guess what had happened. Tom and Allison must have fallen under Joey's control, so he was probably captured. With a groan, Henry opened his eyes. But instead of seeing Joey's smug face standing over him, Henry was pleasantly surprised to see he was still in the Connor's house.

Not to say something didn't happen, as the place was a mess. Furniture was knocked over and items are broken and scattered all across the floor. Ink stains were smattered against the walls and ceiling with a couple of puddles still oozing around the room. It wasn't hard to figure out a huge fight that must have taken place here. Bendy had to have transformed and he must have won otherwise Henry wouldn't still be here. But where was he?

The last thing Henry remembers is Bendy struggling against Joey's control, If he had had to fight in that state, the little devil might not have been able to restrain himself like he normally would. If Bendy had caused Allison and Tom serious injury or maybe even killed them, Bendy would have felt incredibly guilty and would have hidden himself away in fear of hurting Henry too. Thankfully, Henry was sure Bendy hadn't killed them as he was sure their bodies would be around.

Henry's heart skipped a beat when he realized Linda wasn't in sight either.

"Bendy?" Henry called, hoping the devil was nearby as he forced himself to his feet. The little Ink Demon should be able to fill Henry in on what happened, but he had to find him first. Henry let his link with the toon open up in an attempt to help him find Bendy. Henry had closed the link pretty much as soon as everything started, as the jumbled emotions he had been getting had been making it hard for him to think rationally. But even with the link open fully, Henry was only getting faint hints of Bendy's emotions. Even more worried, Henry called out again, "Bendy? Where are you?"

There wasn't any answering call or even a whistle, but Henry heard something sift followed by a soft pained whine. More worried than ever, Henry looked around until he spotted Bendy in a shadowed spot by the wall, a place he had thought was just an ink puddle during his first look around.

Henry immediate hurried to Bendy's side, his heart sinking at the sight of the toon lying in a growing pool of ink. Allison's sword was impaled through one hand, turning the glove nearly black with the ink leaking from the wound. Cuts still leaking ink were on his side and shoulder, but his wings were in the worst shape. One was bent at an unnatural angle while the other resembled a crumpled piece of paper more than a wing.

Henry immediately dropped to his knees by the toon and yanked out the sword. Summoning his golden ink to his hands, Henry began smearing it across the injuries, starting with the cuts on Bendy's body. Once those were closed up, along with one in the demon's hand, Henry turned his attention to Bendy's wings. While constantly applying the golden ink, Henry straightened out the wings. Bendy sifted and whined in pain during the process, which broke Henry's heart, but he didn't wake up which Henry was grateful for.

It was a long process, but eventually, Henry finished treating the little Ink Demon. Once everything was healed, Bendy's wings and tail absorbed back into his body, leaving Bendy as his normal toon self the first time since this whole fiasco started. Henry didn't know what it meant, but Henry took it as a good sign.

Scooping up the toon, Henry stumbled over to the couch and sunk down into it. There was a lot that happened that Henry still wasn't sure about, but it was obvious he and Bendy were in no condition to do anything more tonight. Making sure Bendy was safe and comfortable in his arms, Henry drifted off to sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

**This is my last update for the year as I will be visiting family. Have a Merry Christmas everyone!**

**Planning**

Henry woke up feeling warm and comfortable, with the familiar weight of Bendy curled up on his chest. For those first few peaceful moments, Henry could almost believe that everything had just been a nightmare and they had fallen asleep on the couch again. But the dull throb on the side of his head was enough to remind Henry that everything really did happen and that his family was in danger. As he thought over his situation, Henry couldn't help but grimace. Everything was getting worse with the odds against them stacking higher and higher.

Henry was drawn away from his thoughts by Bendy moving against his chest. Looking down, Henry saw the little Ink Demon slowly open his eyes. The toon demon blinked a couple of times before focusing on Henry's face.

"Good Morning Bendy," Henry smiled kindly down at his toon. At least there was still one bright side, his little Ink Demon was still on his side. Bendy's eyes welled up with tears and clung to Henry, sobbing and letting out relieved whistles. Henry held Bendy close, rubbing the toon comfortingly and whisper assuring words.

"Bendy… what happened when I was knocked out?" Henry asked once the devil was calmer. "Did Allison and Tom fall under Joey's control?"

"Y-Yes," Bendy replied with a slight whistle. He cleared his nonexistent throat and continued normally, "We fought and… I almost killed them! I was so close to finishing off Tom… I had his soul in my grasp…"

"But you didn't hurt them," Henry cut in before Bendy got more upset. "You were able to stop yourself in time and that's all that mattered. What happened after you fought?"

"I got really hurt because I couldn't fight properly without succumbing to the Liar," Bendy continued quietly, rubbing his shoulder as he thought of his crushed wing. "They were about to take you away, but I was able to use the last of my strength to hide you… but then they…. I was too weak to stop them… they took mom to the Liar…"

Henry had known in his heart that something had happened to Linda ever since he realized she wasn't there, but that didn't stop Bendy's words confirming his fears cutting through him like a knife. When Henry had been trapped in the studio, the thought of getting back to Linda had been the only thing keeping him going most days. He had been so glad time and again that she had been spared the horrors he had faced in there. Even with all the baggage he and the others had when they finally made it home, Linda only saw a glimpse of what they went through. But then Joey had to bring what happened in the Studio into his home and has now dragged Linda into the very heart of the conflict.

"We have to face Joey," Henry concluded after hearing what happened. "We have to stop this before it gets any worse."

"He's going to be expecting us…" Bendy whispered in fear, clutching Henry even tighter. "He has everyone on his side… There's no way we can beat him…"

"I know… I know… but we have no choice…" Henry sighed, rubbing Bendy while trying not to let hopeless overwhelm him. Joey held practically all the cards now, with having all the ink creatures on his side and Linda as a hostage. The only bright side was that no innocent bystanders would be dragged into their mess now. Joey knew they would come to him and be waiting for them to walk into whatever trap he had planned.

"We just have to find something we can use to surprise him, just a small detail that he's overlooked that we can take advantage of," Henry said, thinking out loud. "He's defiantly been planning and preparing for this for a long time, so we have to assume he's been gathering information about us and at least knows about your abilities…"

Henry trailed off as he thought about Bendy's powers. The little toon's abilities were pretty mysterious and no one really knew all the details, so there was no way Joey could know all the details.

"Bendy… can you tell who's soul is who's just from a distance?" Henry asked, still looking off into space in thought.

"Not really…" Bendy replied, looking a little confused by the question, but willing to answer if it could help. "It takes a lot of time for me to be around the soul enough to be able to recognize it and pick it out from those around it. I could probably do it with our family, but how would that help?"

"It can help a lot," Henry replied, giving Bendy a hopeful grin. "If we can know where everyone is and who is where we can figure out how to get past them and prepare for who we have to face. But this is still not going to be easy and being at the source of Joey's magic means you'll be more likely to fall under Joey's control, so you'll have to stay back…"

"It's gone…" Bendy whispered so quietly that Henry wasn't sure he heard him at all.

"What was that Bendy?" Henry asked looking at his little Ink Demon fully. The toon had a look of confusion and growing hope on his face.

"The whispers… the Liar's magic… it's gone!" Bendy said, beaming up at Henry. "I don't know how, but it's gone!... I'm not going to fall under his control again!"

"That's wonderful Bendy!" Henry agreed, hugging the demon in relief. "But what changed… what made… of course! I healed you!"

Henry leaned back and cupped his hand, letting some of his golden ink pool into his hand. Bendy stared at it in wonder. Henry had told them about his abilities after he had been able to come to terms with it himself, but Bendy was always amazed whenever he saw it. He and all the ink creatures could tell how special it was, how it felt like a physical manifestation of their Creator's love for them. It only makes sense that it would be able to break the Liar's hold.

"You'll be able to save the others," Bendy smiled, touching the edge of Henry's hand. "You can free them from the Liar's spell."

"Yes," Henry agreed, letting the ink sink back into his skin. "But we need to be careful about letting Joey find out I can do this or he might find some way to counter it. We could grab the others one at a time and free them, but that will only put Linda in greater danger. So we'll have to make sure Linda's safe first before anything else. But with your abilities, we should be able to pull it off. As soon as it's dark, we'll go."

"We can do this," Bendy said with determination.

"We can do this," Henry agreed firmly. For the first time since the whole thing started, they both felt real hope that they'll be able to stop Joey and save the rest of their family.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: For Christmas, I gave you hope... and now you'll know why it was the evilest gift I could have given you. **

**Into The Liar's Den**

True to their word, Henry and Bendy didn't leave the Connor's house until night had fallen. They spent their time waiting to get something to eat, resting some more, and discussing various strategies for what they might encounter. Henry also kept an eye on Bendy, watching for any signs that the effects of his golden ink were wearing off. But to both of their reliefs, Bendy didn't feel even a hint of Joey's magic trying to take over. That didn't things couldn't change once they were at Joey's residence as neither of them doubted his magic would be a lot stronger there, but for now, it wasn't a concern.

Finally, the sun went down, signaling Henry and Bendy's time to depart. They went outside and Bendy transformed into his Ink Devil form. Bendy easily picked Henry up and they began flying towards Joey's house. They had debated whether or not Bendy should use the demon's ink portals to get there faster and make a more sudden arrival, but they decided against it. While all the Ink Creatures being there was more than enough for Bendy to have an anchor to link to and create a stable portal even across such a great distance, Bendy would have very little idea about what awaited them on the other side. And with Joey knowing about the ability, having given it to Bendy in the first place, it would be all to easy for the man to set a trap for just that instance. It wasn't worth the risk.

So Bendy and Henry flew through the air, using the cover of night to remain unnoticed by any ordinary citizen they passed. It was a lot longer than the flight to the Connor's and Henry found himself getting cold from the wind. There was nothing he could do about it so he just held onto Bendy tighter and wish he had thought to bring a sweater. Bendy, on the other hand, found that he was actually starting to feel the strain of flying. He had never flown this far in a single stretch on his own let alone with a passenger. He would never admit it, but he was relieved to finally touch down a distance from Joey's home.

"You ready," Henry asked as he was put down to stand on his own to feet. Bendy didn't feel ready to face the Liar and the others under his control, but he wasn't going to let Henry go alone. With a grim determination, Bendy gave Henry a nod.

The two began to slowly make there way through the trees towards Joey's house, keeping an eye out for any Ink Creatures that might be roaming on patrol. As they got closer, Bendy should start making out the souls individually. He glanced over them, taking making count when his gaze landed on a soul that could only be Joey's. The moment the Ink Devil locked eyes on it, he let out a predatory growl, his wings flaring and tail lashing behind him as he crouched down and held his claws at the ready.

"Bendy? Are you alright?" Henry asked, immediately stepping in front of the Ink Devil in an attempt to prevent him from running off. "Is it Joey's spell? Do you need to stay back?"

"It's not that…" Bendy hissed, looking down at Henry though he kept glancing at the Liar's soul. "It's his soul… it calls to me… demanding I devour it…"

It was hard for Bendy to describe what he was feeling to Henry, especially as his instincts seemed to be at war within himself. On the one hand, he had his more demonic side. The side that saw the Liar's vile soul, a consuming black with only the barest hints of red, and demanded he consumes it. To rid the world of such a terrible being. On the other hand, there was his toon side. The side that had suffered decades under the Liar's cruel hand. He was angry at the Liar for what he had suffered, but he was mostly afraid. He had nearly fallen under the Liar's control again and he was afraid it could still happen. He was afraid of what terrible things he would suffer. But above both sides refused to leave Henry, his Creator, and his dad.

"Are you going to be alright to move forward with the plan?" Henry continued calmly, though he remained firmly in Bendy's way. Bendy closed his eyes and took a deep breath to help him steady his raging instincts. Once he was calmer, he opened his eyes and gave Henry a nod before returning to surveying the souls.

"Norman and the Butcher Gang are patrolling the grounds," Bendy reported as he picked out the individual souls. "Sammy and Alice are guarding the entrances with Boris roaming around the house. Allison, Tom, and Linda are in the same room as the Liar."

"Sounds like he's using Allison and Tom as his personal guards," Henry concluded. "We're going to have to draw them away so we can get Linda safely away. You said Boris is wandering between the rooms, do you think you can time it so that you could open an ink portal in a temporarily empty room?"

Bendy watched a bit longer, keeping track of how long Boris was in each room and how long each room is empty. Once he had that information, he told Henry, "It'll be close but I can get us inside without being noticed, The only thing is it won't take long for someone to find us."

"That's fine with what I have in mind," Henry assured as he thought over everything. "We know I'm the one Joey's after, so we can use that. You drop me off in an empty room and I'll get Joey's attention. While he and the others are distracted by me, you can grab Linda and get her to safety. Once you do that, I'll try and hold everyone off long enough for you to come back and get me."

"I don't like this plan…" Bendy couldn't help but hiss. It wasn't the worst plan considering the circumstances, but it still put Henry in a far more dangerous situation than the Ink Demon cared for.

"I know you're worried," Henry replied, gently patting Bendy. "But It's the best plan we have. Once Linda's safe, we can start grabbing the others and freeing them. This may be our only chance and we have to take it."

Bendy growled in frustration but agreed. Holding Henry close, Bendy watched Boris wander and timed his ink portal to open just as Boris was leaving a room. Bendy pulled Henry through as soon as the portal was fully opened and the quietly stepped into the Liar's living room. Bendy was about to return through the portal, but his instincts stopped him.

The Liar's whole house seemed to be spilling over with demonic magic, but this room, in particular, seemed especially malicious. Bendy couldn't help but put an arm in front of Henry to prevent his Creator from moving farther into the room as he looked around. Henry gave Bendy a questioning look that Bendy didn't know how to answer. Instead, he just tried to figure out what his instincts were trying to tell him. As Bendy took a closer look at everything, he subconsciously took a step forward. Unfortunately, his foot just crossed the edge of a hidden ritual circle that flared to life.


	11. Chapter 11

**Caught**

The moment the circle flared to life, chains made of red energy shot forward and wrapped around Bendy's wrists and ankles. The Ink Devil let out a screech of pure terror as he tried to scramble away from the circle. But despite the Ink Devil's strength, the chains remained strong and began slowly pulling him towards the center of the circle, draining the demon's power in the process.

"Bendy!" Henry shouted in worry and fear, finally processing what was happening and snapping himself out of his stunned state. He dove forward, reaching for his son who now had both feet within the circle's boundaries and had shrunken down into his half transformed state. Before Henry could grab ahold of his toon, an arm snaked around and slammed into his chest. Henry found himself pressed against what he soon realized was Sammy. Henry tried to break free, but between the Prophet's strong grip and the ax was soon pressed against his neck, Henry was forced to give up.

Bendy soon lost the fight with the circle's power. Bendy was reduced to his toon form in the center of the circle with more chains appearing to help keep him in place. The little Ink Demon was stuck in a kneeling position with his arms being held out to the sides by the chains on his wrists. The circle continued to drain power from the devil to keep him weak, making his form unstable. His feet were mostly melted and ink started to drip down his face. Bendy looked at Henry with fearful eyes as they both came to the same conclusion, that they were trapped with no way to escape.

_No!_ Henry thought desperately, frantically looking around for something… anything he could use to get out of this situation. His eyes zeroed in on the edge of the circle which was just out of reach of his foot. If he could somehow get out of Sammy's grip long enough to smudge the ink and break the circle, Bendy would be free.

"Sammy, isn't Bendy your Lord?" Henry asked, hoping to turn the mind control into his favor. "Shouldn't you be helping him?"

"My… Lord..?" Sammy mumbled, his grip slacking slightly. Henry was just starting to feel hope that he could turn this situation when Sammy's hold tightened once more and the Prophet said firmly, "He is a false Lord. I only serve the Master now."

"It's no use Henry," Joey said as he wheeled into the room, flipping on the lights as he did so. Henry glared at his former friend as the man continued smugly, "I made sure the mind control was in breakable before I set my plan to motion, though the demon managed to slip through my web. A mistake that is a moot point now that it is contained."

Bendy growled at the Liar, snapping his sharp teeth in his direction in an attempt to appear defiant. No one was fooled however as they could see the toon shaking in fear. Joey paid no mind to the trapped toon, focused only on Henry as he continued, "I must admit, you were a lot harder to capture old friend, but I have you here now and I can finally move on with my plan."

"We are not friends!" Henry snapped, loathing the mad man before him. "And whatever you're planning, I want no part of! So just let me and everyone else go!"

"But what I have in mind is something truly wonderful," Joey continued with a charming smile, speaking as if he were talking to a stubborn child. "I was originally just going to kill you for destroying the world I created and take back my rebellious creations, but then I saw what you had done with them. How you were able to almost repair them and get them closer to being on model. Even all the knowledge of magic and rituals I've gained over the years, I only just managed to create a few perfect toons, never restore ones that came out wrong, especially not the demon. That's when I realized that with my skills in magic and yours as the so-called "Creator", we could finally create the perfect toons I always wanted. Just imagine what that kind of power and ability could grant us! This is beyond just restarting the studio or an amusement park like I used to desire. We could change the world!"

"You have truly lost your mind!" Henry replied, disgusted by Joey's disregard for all those he sacrificed. Bendy whistled in agreement as Henry continued, "For you must be insane to think I would ever help you! You've murdered people without a second glance and you are talking about doing it again. You considered Bendy and the others as monsters for what they looked like, but you're the real monster for all you've done! No! I will never help you! No matter what!"

"I was hoping you would see things my way," Joey sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. "Now I'll have to use more… unpleasant… means of persuasion."

"Henry!" Linda said in fear as Allison and Tom dragged her into the room.

"Linda!" Henry said in worry. He tried to get to her, but Sammy's grip remained strong and the axed pressed a bit more against his throat, threatening to kill him If he continued to struggle. Bendy's ink bubbled slightly as if he was trying to transform, but the circle just drained him more, making so he melted even more. Bendy choked slightly as he coughed up ink before he managed to stabilize himself slightly.

"You call me a murder, so you know that I mean it when I say that if you don't comply I will have her killed," Joey said casually, Allison holding her sword to Linda's throat to prove Joey's point. "Of course I wouldn't be let her soul go as it can be used to create a perfect toon. Of course, without the ink machine, it'll be a lot harder to form a good vessel. I could always try just preserving her soul until I have a way to create an ink body for her, but I'm not sure what effects being without a real vessel of some sort can have on a soul…"

Henry's eyes just widen and his heart sank as Joey talked. Henry was willing to let anything happen to himself to keep Joey from accomplishing his goals, but he couldn't sacrifice Linda like that. He couldn't condemn her to a fate worse than death.

"Alright…" Henry said, bowing his head in defeat. "I'll do whatever it is you want… Just don't hurt Linda."

"Henry no!" Linda pleaded, but she was soon dragged out of the room by her two captors as Joey smiled sinisterly.

"Excellent," Joey said, clapping his hands together in pleasure. "We have a lot of work to do and there's no time like the present. Let's start by getting my star into proper shape."

Joey's gaze fell on the trapped toon, causing Bendy to whimper in fear and shrink back as much as the chains would let him as he wonders what terrible fate laid in store for him.


	12. Chapter 12

**The Ritual**

Bendy whimpered in fear under the Liar's gaze, one of his worst nightmares coming true. He was trapped and at the mercy of the Liar once more, and not even the Creator would be able to help him now. He twisted and tugged trying to get away, but the chains were too strong, leaving him hopelessly trapped. Henry could feel his toon's fear pouring over his link and his thoughts raced as for some way to save his little ink demon.

"Isn't a bit late to be working tonight?" Henry suggested, grasping at straws. "Shouldn't we wait until morning?"

"One should never wait to fulfill one's dreams," Joey laughed, though his eyes turned cold. "After we get our star in shape, we'll be done for the night. I can bring Linda back out here if you still need motivation."

Henry felt his heart skip a beat at Joey's words. The mad man was forcing him to choose between Linda and Bendy, to choose between his wife and his son. How could he ever make such a terrible choice? Henry tried to think of something, anything, to get out of this, but his mind was blank. He couldn't see anyway way out of this. He was going to lose someone he loved and he had to choose which. He couldn't do this… He couldn't… he couldn't!

"…D-dad…" Bendy's stumbled word, snapped Henry out of his spiraling thoughts and racing emotions. Henry turned his gaze to his toon who was staring up at him with determination.

"…It's alright (whistle)…" Bendy continued, forcing himself to speak with a shaky smile. "… I'll (squeak) be fine… Just (whistle) keep mom safe… Everything will (whistle) turn out all right… I trust you…"

While Henry could still feel Bendy's fear, he was also feeling trust, resolve and a spark of hope coming from the toon. As the two stared at each other, Henry saw Bendy glance down at Henry's hand before looking back up. It only took a moment for Henry to realize what the demon was thinking. He was willing to let himself be sacrificed to Joey because he trusted Henry's golden ink would be able to heal him. He believed that no matter what happened, his Creator would be able to bring him back. Henry wasn't sure if he had that much faith in his still relatively unknown powers, but for Bendy's sake, he had to cling to the hope that it could save the toon from whatever Joey had planned. Henry gave his toon a small nod to let him know he understood.

"Well hasn't this been touching," Joey said sarcastically, clapping his hands to bring attention back to him. "But I think this has gone on long enough. Are you ready Henry?"

"Want do you want me to do?" Henry asked in defeat. He would never be ready to do Joey's bidding, especially when it was probably going to harm his toons, but he had no choice. He just had to believe is his golden ink like Bendy believed in him.

"I knew you'd come around," Joey smiled smugly. "And I'm not asking you to do anything difficult, inf act it's what you do best! I need you to draw. Specifically, I need you to draw several drawings of our little devil darling looking and acting perfect, just like you used to. Remember to do your best, as this will affect your "son" after all."

Henry suppressed the urge to snap at Joey for using the word son like an insult. He tore his glare away from Joey as Sammy shoved him over to the drawing desk. Henry sat himself in the chair, picking up the pen and taking a deep breath to steady himself. As much as he hated to do it, he'd follow Joey's command to do his best on the drawings. He couldn't risk something he did hurting Bendy. So he pushed aside all his turbulent thoughts and emotions, his anger and fear about being in this situation, letting himself focus only on the pen in his hand and the paper before him.

It was easier than he expected to push out everything and just lose himself in his drawing. It didn't take long for the pages to be filled with drawings of his little ink demon. He did some expected ones, like a reference sheet and Bendy in various poses from the show. But he also drew some that the real Bendy had done at home, like reading a book and playing with a cat that looked like Ink Blot. Henry doubted Joey would use those drawings, but Henry hoped that if he did, they would help preserve the real Bendy.

Joey took the drawings once he determined that Henry had done enough, looking them over critically. Henry could only watch as he discarded Henry's favorite drawings, the ones that showed his little toon as he knew him, keeping only the standard ones.

"Excellent work as always," Joey praised as he straightened out the small stack of papers. "You're as talented as ever, giving all your drawings a certain spark that no one else could ever truly replicate. With these, we'll finally get out perfect star!"

Henry clenched his fist in anger as Joey approached the circle Bendy was trapped in. Even though Joey was the one that originally brought the toons to life, he never saw them as living things. Even now, he still only saw them as objects, flawed ones at that. He didn't understand that they didn't need to be "perfect" as they were truly amazing just the way they are.

Bendy whimpered in fear as Joey spread out the papers around the circle before forcing himself to stand up from his wheelchair and pulling out a book. Joey flipped through the book before he began to chant from it. Henry couldn't understand the language, but the words seemed to be filled with power. The circle began to glow brighter and Bendy began to panic, tugging at the chains as hard as he could, even when the effort just caused his form to become more unstable. Henry could only watch in horror and sorrow, unable to help his toon as ink seemed to bubble up from the papers around the circle. Bendy started rising in the air as the ink started to swirl around him. He let one last fearful shriek before becoming encased in an inky cocoon.

Joey's chanting became louder and the circle glowed brighter as the cocoon quivered before slowly molding into a familiar shape. Joey exclaimed the final verse, snapping his book shut in triumph. The light faded from the circle and the shaped uncurled, touching down with shiny black shoes. With a rounder body, even horns, and completely black pie cut eyes, Bendy stood in the center of the circle, looking as perfect as if he had walked off the page.


	13. Chapter 13

**Perfect**

"It worked…" Joey breathed in amazement, sinking back down into his wheelchair. Henry was just as stunned as Joey, but it was impossible for him to feel any amazement at the result as he was far more concerned about Bendy.

"…Bendy..?" Henry asked softly, taking a small step closer to the toon though Sammy prevented him from getting close. Henry knew with absolute certainty that the ritual had affected more than just Bendy's outer appearance, for he could feel nothing coming from the link he had with his toon. He hadn't felt the link snap or dissolve during the ritual, and he wasn't getting jumbled and hazy feelings from Bendy as he could feel from the mind-controlled toons. There was a void on Bendy's side of the link as if there was nothing at all for Henry to feel. And as his little ink demon continued to stare blankly ahead of him, not responding to Henry at all, the horrible truth began to dawn on Henry.

Joey had removed everything that made Bendy, Bendy. His unique personality, his memories, and even his thoughts… they had all been scooped out, leaving this hollow shell of a toon in his place. To Henry, this Bendy seemed as lifeless as the cutouts that once filled the studio, with only the occasional blink to set him apart. Henry couldn't help but choke out a sob as he realized his toon, the son that he loved, was practically dead and Joey had forced him to be the one that pulled the trigger.

"Bendy, come here," Joey ordered, Bendy responding to his voice where the demon had ignored Henry. "I want to get a good look at you."

Bendy walked over to stand in front of Joey and Henry couldn't help but watch his movements. He wasn't stiff or robotic, though a part Henry wished he was as a way to show how lifeless he was. But the little toon moved fluidly and the animator in Henry couldn't help but admire how it was exactly how he walked in the show. But the fatherly side kept pointing out how it was different than how his Bendy, the real Bendy, moved. His Bendy always walked with deadly grace, something that developed from being both a dancer and a predator. The difference was just another confirmation that Henry's little ink demon was gone, with only this paper puppet left behind.

"Flawless… absolutely flawless," Joey praised as he looked over the toon. "I was finally able to make him look like the star he was meant to be. And of course, I removed that rebellious streak of his as that had always been a nuisance."

Henry felt a surge of anger at how casually Joey spoke about destroying everything that made Bendy real and alive. It took all his will power not to lunge at the man and sock him across the jaw. As much as Henry wanted to, he knew it would be a terrible idea. Sammy would stop him before he would be able to do any permeant damage and no doubt Linda would suffer the consequences. He could not throw away Bendy's sacrifice like that.

"Oh this is truly wonderful," Joey smiled, looking over at Henry. "Just look at what we were able to accomplish! Finally, all our dreams are going to come true!"

"They're your dreams, Joey," Henry couldn't help but snap, furious that Joey was deluding himself into thinking Henry would want anything with this madness. "They're your dreams, not mine."

"I see you still haven't come around despite this great accomplishment," Joey sighed, almost looking disappointed. "No matter, I'm sure as we continue our work, you'll start seeing things my way. Sleep well Henry, for we have a lot of work to do tomorrow."

Sammy began shoving Henry towards the room where Linda was being held, following some silent order from Joey. Henry wanted desperately to grab Bendy and try undoing everything with his golden ink, but he never even had the chance before he was shoved through the door. Allison and Tom stepped out of the room once Henry was inside and locked the door behind them. While there was no doubt they were guarding the door, Henry was glad that at least he and Linda could have this small amount of privacy.

"Oh Henry, I'm glad you're alright," Linda threw her arms around him as soon as she could. "I was so worried. I could hear Bendy shrieking in terror only for it to be cut off. What happened to him, Henry? What happened to our little ink demon? What did that madman do?"

"… Linda…" Henry could barely say, tears starting rolling down his cheeks. Linda guided them over to the bed had them sit down on it. As soon as they were settled, Ink Blot came out from under the bed and hopped onto Henry's lap, rubbing him in comfort. Henry blinked in surprise, looking down at the cat then at Linda.

"She was here when I woke up," Linda answered Henry's unasked question. "I'm not sure how she got here, but she was a comfort to me while I was being used as bait. She really is a clever little thing, as she always hid before anyone else came in and saw her."

"I wonder if she knows something's happened to Bendy…" Henry couldn't help but mumbled as he absentmindedly stroked Ink Blot. "She always seemed to know when he needed her…"

"Henry… please… what happened to Bendy?" Linda asked taking Henry's free hand in her own. "I know whatever happened to him was because Joey threatened to hurt me instead. I need to know what happened to him."

"Joey performed a ritual…" Henry sobbed. "It made him look perfect, but it got rid of his personality. I helped Joey do it… Bendy trusted me… and I helped destroy him… Bendy believed I could heal him… but I don't know if I can fix something like this… what if I can't?... What is Bendy's gone forever?... It'll be all my fault… my toon… my son… killed by my own hand…"

Henry continued to sob as the weight of everything pressed down on him. He was stuck in this terrible situation, having not only helped destroy Bendy but most likely going to do the same to the others. He had no idea if he could undo what Joey did and it terrified him. He feared that his little ink demon was gone forever and he was the that helped make it possible.

Linda wrapped her arms around Henry, doing her best to comfort him even as tears flowed down her own cheeks. The two stayed embraced for a long time, letting themselves morn what could truly be the loss of their son. Long after their tears ran dry, exhaustion eventually made itself known and they fell into a fitful sleep, still holding each other for comfort.


	14. Chapter 14

**Expanding the Cast**

Joey had Henry work on drawings for the rest of the toons and ink creatures over the next several days, getting them just right for the rituals. Alice and Boris were easy for Henry to draw, as he had designed them originally and he could make their models in his sleep. Both of them were done and "perfected" in the same day. The Butcher Gang were a bit trickier, as they hadn't been designed by him and he was more used to drawing them as they were now rather than their show appearance. It took a day for Henry to get each member's model just right for Joey's approval.

The toons, once they were "perfected", weren't as hollow as Bendy. They were allowed to retain the personalities they had in the show, though they were all completely obedient to Joey. It was weird for Henry to see them interact with each other and himself, as there always something lacking. His real toons all had traits of their show personalities, but they were so much more than that, having grown and developed from both their time in the Studio and their life with Henry. To have them reverted like this made them seem as two-dimensional as they had once been physically.

The human ink creatures were a challenge to get right as Henry had to develop their designs from scratch. Allison and Tom were especially difficult as Henry had only met Tom briefly and Allison was a ways off from being hired by the time he left the studio. He didn't have any memory of what they looked like before becoming ink creatures and had to rely on Joey's descriptions and they few times the couple had mentioned what they had remembered about their past selves.

Joey and Henry often spent hours and even days debating back and forth about how each one should look, with sketch after sketch being drawn as each design was reworked. During one of their debates, Henry was surprised to find himself hit with a wave of nostalgia. Him sitting at a drawing desk debating with Joey about how a character should look reminded him so much of when they had first opened the studio together. Those days had been full of stress and ambition as they tried to find their place in the animation world. He remembered so clearly how proud he had been when he first came up for Bendy's design and had proudly shown it to Joey. Joey had liked Henry's design as well though he had offered several suggestions to try and make him both stand out more and appeal to the audience. Once they came to a design they could both agree on, they had shared a laugh and a handshake at a job well done, both firmly believing that their little dancing demon would lead their small studio into a bright future.

A part of Henry longed for those days when he and Joey had truly been friends and they had shared a dream of making their work known to all the world. But Joey had let his ambition grown too large, corrupting everything and everyone around him. He became so blinded by his goals and wanting more, that he ignored the progress they had made, believing his dream wasn't coming fast enough. Henry couldn't keep up with that, especially as it was beginning to hurt his new marriage with Linda, causing him to walk away. And having gone through the Studio and now this nightmare, Henry knew there was nothing of the former friend he knew, having disappeared a long time ago. Whatever it took, Henry would find someone way to save his family, his toons, his friends, and his little Ink Demon from the control of this mad man.

Speaking of his little Ink Demon, the first few days after being "perfected", Joey kept the devil by his side. Joey claimed it was so he could admire his success at finally creating the perfect toon, but Henry knew it was to rub it in Henry's face that the little demon that had rebelled and sided with Henry to bring down Joeys control was now completely under his thumb. But as the days went on, Joey got more confident and let Bendy stay by Henry every now and then, keeping an eye on Henry along with whatever other toon or ink creature was acting as his guard.

Henry would use these opportunities to try and start bringing back Bendy with his golden ink, gently rubbing Bendy between his horns to apply it. Henry couldn't risk doing the gesture often or more than a few drops at a time, as he had to make sure none of the mind-controlled toons or Joey glimpsed what he was doing. It got a little easier once Joey let Linda come out of their room. She would stay by Henry's side and casually chat with the toon guarding Henry. Linda would keep the guard distracted just enough for Henry to apply even more of his golden ink to Bendy. She would also gently squeeze Henry's shoulder when he needs to stop to keep from getting caught.

There wasn't any response from Bendy at first, not that Henry really expected anything from just a few drops, but just as Henry was beginning to worry his ink wasn't having any effect at all, Bendy reacted to Henry. It was subtle, so much though that if Henry hadn't been looking for it he would have missed it, when Henry rubbed Bendy between his horns, the little devil ever so slightly leaned into Henry's touch. Henry made sure not to react, but his heart filled with hope.

As more and more of Henry's golden ink made its way into his little Ink Demon, Bendy would start to act a little more little more like himself. The way he walked changed, the was the tiniest yellow spark in his pie cut eyes, and Henry swore he even heard a soft purr when he rubbed the devil between his horns. All of these changes were incredibly subtle and it was only because Henry was so familiar with his little Ink Demon that he noticed. And while Henry was so relieved to know that he'd be able to bring his little Ink Demon back, he found himself facing a hard choice. If he continued slowly applying his golden ink, Bendy would show more signs of returning to his old self and Joey was bound to notice long before Henry completely freed his toon. Should he wait until Joey dropped his guard and he had Bendy alone for a while? Or should he keep going as he had been and hope that Bendy's free will came back before his physical changes became too obvious? Before Henry could come to a conclusion, Joey decided to throw a wrench in any plans he could come up with.

"Henry," Joey said with a smile, the day after they had "perfected" the last human ink creature into a toon. "I think it's time we rebuilt the Ink Machine."


	15. Chapter 15

**The Big Picture**

"What did you say?" Henry asked slowly, hoping he had somehow misheard Joey.

"I think it's time we rebuilt the Ink Machine," Joey repeated, grinning as broadly as ever. Even after hearing it again, Henry still couldn't believe Joey would even suggest such a thing. Henry might not have been there when the machine had first been installed but had spent years trapped in the aftermath. All that pain and disappear where even death didn't release one from their suffering. And Joey wanted to rebuild the blasting thing that had helped cause all that?

"What do you even want the Ink Machine for?" Henry asked, dreading the answer. Wasn't it enough that Joey had forced Henry to turn his family into his perfect toons? What more could he possibly hope to gain by having the Ink Machine rebuilt?

"Just take a look around," Joey said with a proud flourish, gesturing specifically to the humans turned toons. Henry glanced at but adverted his gaze quickly. In many ways, Henry felt what he did to them was worse than what he helped do to his toons. They hadn't come out of the studio fully human, but they had all done their best to hold onto the remnants they had with Henry helping as best he could to give a form that represented more human when he could. They had adjusted and learned to cope with changes and had been happy. But now all that had been stripped away, there forms forced into a rubber skin of a toon. Norman was the hardest for Henry as there been many days where he had wished that he could have helped the Projectionist look more human. But now he did and it was just a cruel imitation of the man he once was.

The humans didn't have prepared personalities like the original toons, so they had been forced to adopt simpler and exaggerated ones based on their original ones. They were more robotic than the toons, though not nearly as lifeless as Bendy. Joey had been so proud of how each one turned out, but Henry still didn't understand what they had to do with rebuilding the Ink Machine.

"Just look at them all," Joey said as he looked at them, his eyes gleaming with an emotion Henry couldn't identify. "They are perfect… free from all the burdens of humanity. They can bounce back from every injury, they'll never get sick, and they will never age. They are immortal and now look at us…"

Joey turned back to Henry, tapping his wheelchair as he continued. "We are getting old… our bodies no longer as strong or as energetic as they once were. It won't be long before we pass from this world for good. But with the Ink Machine, we can change that! We'll be able to live forever and never have to worry about such a terrible fate."

"Just when I think you can't get any more insane… you go and say something like this…" Henry said, stunned disbelief rapidly turning to anger. "You can't be serious! You murdered so many people, stole their souls and force them to suffers in forms made of ink. You stripped away their humanity and their freedom and acting like you've given them a gift. Do you want to be immortal? No… you want to be a god! Once you have the Ink Machine and have turned yourself into a toon you still won't be satisfied. You've shown just how far you're willing to go and I know you won't stop. You'll start getting more people and turning them into toons, claiming you're making a better world. Well, I want nothing to do with it! I won't help you!"

"You don't have much of a choice or have you forgotten that have no problem ordering Linda's death," Joey smiled cruelly, making Henry pale. But he couldn't do it, he couldn't doom the world and was about to say as much when Joey cut him off saying "But I don't need your help quite yet so you'll have plenty of time change your mind once the machine had been rebuilt. You'll make the right choice if you know what's good for you and Linda… In the meantime…"

Joey gestured to Tom and the toon man walked over. Joey drew a ritual circle on a piece of paper and placed it against Tom's chest, chanting a spell. The circle began to glow and disappeared completely once Joey finished, appearing to have melted through the page and into Tom. As soon as the spell was complete, the toon man's eyes closed and he slumped onto the floor.

"What did you do to him?" Henry demanded as he hurried over, kneeling by Tom's side to check him over.

"I released my hold on his mind," Joey replied, much to Henry's surprise. "I need him to have his full capabilities so he can rebuild the Ink Machine. Don't worry, he'll be waking up in a few minutes."

"He's not going to help you rebuild the machine or help with your crazy plans," Henry glared, keeping himself between Tom and Joey. "He's regretted ever creating that thing in the first place and won't be persuaded otherwise."

"Henry… Henry… Henry…" Joey shook his head as if Henry was a child throwing a tantrum. "You seem to forget I hold all the cards in this little game of ours. And just like I've been able to get what I want from you, I have what Tom holds most dear."

Allison, as if summoned by Joey's words, came to stand by his side as he said "I'm sure Tom will be most willing to help fulfill my glorious vision, especially if it means keeping his precious angel safe."

Henry could only glare, knowing that Joey was right. Tom would never do anything to risk Allison, just like Henry couldn't risk Linda. They were both going to be forced to Joey's bidding, possibly dooming the world in the process. Henry felt so helpless as Tom began to stir…


	16. Chapter 16

**The Mechanic**

Tom's head felt extremely fuzzy. There wasn't an ache that usually came when he had been knocked unconscious or was suffering from a really bad hangover. He just felt like his head had been stuffed with cotton, his thoughts hard to focus and his memoirs unclear. All he could truly recall was falling asleep next to Allison than feeling… something… something really wrong…

Filled with fear and worry about what happened and what might have happened caused Tom's eyes to snap open. Tom saw someone standing over him and his first instinct was to fight. He tried to punch the figure over him with his robotic fist, but apparently, the figure was prepared for that reaction. The figure was holding down Tom's arm so he couldn't get any leverage. But that wasn't going to stop Tom for long as he prepared to attack with his free hand.

"Tom! Clam down! It's me!" Henry's familiar voice cut through Tom's panicked haze, making the toon man stop his struggles and he started to really focus on his surroundings. Henry was leaning over him and he was in a room he didn't recognize but seemed familiar in some way. Henry himself wasn't his normal cheerful self, looking even more worn down and hopeless than some of his worse loops in the Studio. Seeing Henry look so defeated sent another spike of fear through Tom, convinced something terrible had happened.

"Henry? What's going on?" Where's Allison?" Tom demanded, looking around with increasing panic. Henry started to say something when he noticed a familiar sword and ponytail over Henry's shoulder. Tom pushed Henry aside as he scrambled to his feet and hurried towards Allison. She looked different, more toon like than he had ever seen her, but he would recognize her anywhere. Something had clearly happened during the time he couldn't remember but that could wait. The important thing was that Allison was here. She was alive, seemed to be alright and Tom was going to make sure she was safe no matter what craziness was going on right now. Tom was about to through his arms around her and hold his angel close when he froze in his tracks, Allison's sword hovering right in front of his chest.

"Allison..?" Tom asked slowly, unable to process how the love of his life could be currently threatening him. "Allison… Ali… It's me… Tom. Don't you recognize me?"

Allison didn't respond, only tightening her grip on her sword. As Tom looked deep into her pie cut eyes, searching for any glimmer of recognition, Tom felt his heart sank as her face remained blank. There was no doubt in Tom's mind that this was Allison, but something terrible had happened to her. Something that left her eyes strangely empty of the fiery personality she normally had. Whatever happened, Tom was going to find some way to fix it.

"Allison, please don't be afraid, I could never hurt you" Tom continued speaking, hoping that even if Allison didn't recognize him he could at least convince her he wasn't a threat. He was about to try and say some more when he noticed a shift in her expression. Her eyes were full of a strong emotion that couldn't quite recognize. Tom wouldn't say it was love… maybe loyalty… or devotion… Whatever it was, Tom could clearly see that it wasn't directed at him, but at something over his shoulder…

"I'm afraid she'll never believe anything you say," The horribly familiar voice of the Liar came from behind Tom. The Liar was heard and had done something to his angel. With a snarl of rage, Tom whirled around and tried to lunge at the man who was the source of all his misery only to have Allison grab onto him and hold her sword against his throat. While Tom knew he could escape and continue his attack, he wouldn't be able to do so without hurting Allison. He couldn't do that so he had no choice but to stand down, glaring at the man responsible standing in front of him.

"Hello Tom, I once again require you brilliant mechanical skills," Joey said, almost as if they were still in the Studio and Tom was still his employee. Joey leaned forward on his cane and said: "I need your help to rebuild the Ink Machine."

"Never!" Tom growled without hesitation, only Allison's arm around keeping him from lunging. "I don't what you've done to Allison or what impossible scheme you're chasing, but I won't have anything to do with it. So just let Allison go and stay out of our lives!"

"Tom, you have yet to grasp that you have absolutely no power here," Joey replied, a smug grin stretched across his face. "Allison is completely under my control. She would take a bath in acetone if I ordered her to. Of course, if that happened, I would preserve her soul and your only chance of getting her back would be rebuilding the Ink Machine. So why don't we skip all that unpleasantness and just get to the part where you do what I want."

Everything in Tom rejected the idea of helping Joey and rebuilding that blasted machine. But Tom couldn't risk Allison getting hurt. He never could risk that and both him and Joey knew it. The fight drained out of Tom as he accepted his situation. Joey was once again going to force him to take part in terrible things and there was nothing Tom could do.

"Alright Joey," Tom mumbled, unable to look the arrogant jerk in the eye. "I'll help rebuild that cursed machine."

"I knew you'd see things my way," Joey said smugly, sinking back down into his wheelchair with the knowing satisfaction he had won.


	17. Chapter 17

**The Ink Machine**

"We'll now that's all been settled, I see no reason why we shouldn't start immediately," Joey said, sounding far too cheerful for Tom's tastes. "See Henry, I knew Tom would be willing to help."

Tom blinked in surprise, he had completely forgotten the former animator was here. Tom glanced over to see Henry being guarded by what he could only guess were the toonified Sammy and Norman. Henry didn't make any struggle though he still glared at Joey, somehow finding some sort of determination despite their hopeless situation.

"I still don't know how you expect to fix the blasted thing even with Tom's" Henry replied coolly. "Have you forgotten that the Studio went bankrupt long ago? You have no resources or money to even get the parts to fix it, so you might as well give up on it!"

For a moment, Tom dared to hope that Henry was right and that Joey would let them go. But look at Joey's smug face told him that Joey already had a solution to that problem. They were never going to be let go."

"I would have thought the solution would be obvious to you of all people Henry," Joey said, gesturing for Bendy to come closer. "After all, you claim to know our little Devil Darlin' better than anyone, so you should know he has the perfect ability we need."

"You let him keep that ability?" Henry asked, surprised Joey let Bendy keep any ability that could be potentially used against him.

"It was far too useful to get rid of. Now Bendy," Joey commanded, barely glancing at the little Ink Demon. "You are to create everything Tom needs to repair the Ink Machine, but only that. You are to take no other orders from him and if he asks for something that doesn't seem like it belongs to the Ink Machine you are to come to me immediately. Of course, that shouldn't be an issue if he knows what's good for him."

Tom knew perfectly well what Joey meant, even without Allison briefly tightening her hold on him. As much as he hated it, he was going to go along with Joey's plans.

"Now that that's been settled you best get started," Joey said with finality, clapping his hands together once. "Tom, you go work on the Ink Machine with Bendy. In the meantime Henry, You're going to help me design a new better form for myself."

The next few weeks passed with them working on their projects. Henry had to make drawing after drawing for Joey, trying to create a toon model he approved him. But it seemed like no matter what he tried or how much he followed Joey's instructions, the man was never satisfied. Tom in the meanwhile was working on the Ink Machine with the tools Bendy created for him. The Ink Demon had really done a number on the old thing, so it had taken Tom several days just to find and remove the damaged parts and figure out what he could still use. Once all that was done, he was able to start rebuilding, telling Bendy what part to create as needed. It unnerved Tom to see Bendy's empty eyes and cemented grin whenever he looked over at the little devil, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.

When Tom was about halfway done with rebuilding the Ink Machine, Henry started noticing something was wrong with Bendy whenever he saw him. The toon seemed to move more sluggishly and the black parts of him seemed paler than they should. Joey denied anything was wrong whenever Henry pointed it out and refused to give the little Ink Demon a break no matter how much Henry begged him to. The closer Tom got to finishing the Ink Machine, the more parts Bendy created, the worse the little devil seemed to get. Tom took notice before long, though Joey ignored him when he voiced his concerns as well. All Tom could do was try and go as long as he could without making Bendy create anything more for him, hoping to ease the obvious strain on the poor toon.

Then the Ink Machine was in its final stages of completion and not even Joey could deny that Bendy wasn't doing well. The poor little devil could barely muster the energy to move and Henry could see that his limbs had a slight tremble to them. Bendy had used so much of his own ink without being given a real chance to replenish it that his black parts had all become a dark grey. But still, Joey refused to let him feast and recover, saying that once the Ink Machine was complete, they could use that to fix Bendy. Neither Tom nor Henry liked that, but they had no choice but to go along with it.

"Alright Bendy, I just need one last thing," Tom sighed sadly, looking over at the drained toon. The little devil didn't even look up, just holding his trembling hands at the ready to create whatever Tom needed.

"This is the final piece and after this, we'll be all done," Tom tried to comfort the toon, though he doubted Bendy truly heard him. "I just need one last gear, eight inches in diameter, then you can finally rest."

Bendy gave no sign of acknowledgment to Tom except for the ink started to gather in between his hands. As more ink gathered, Bendy's hands began to shake even more and his whole body started to wobble.

"Bendy! Stop!" Tom said in worry, seeing the rapidly deteriorating state of the little Ink Demon. "You have to stop! Please Bendy!"

The devil ignored Tom's pleas, focused solely on creating the gear. As Bendy began to shape the gear, he collapsed onto one knee and his eyes began to droop. Finally Bendy crumpled to the floor, the completed gear clanging against the ground.


	18. Chapter 18

**Little Ink Demon**

"Bendy!" Tom shouted the moment the little devil collapsed, rushing to his side. The toon was even paler than he had been and when Tom touched him, his hands started to sink into him. Tom tried to be careful as he turned the little ink demon onto his back, but it wasn't easy. Bendy's form was barely holding together, his stretching a bit as Tom tried to lift him and the rest trying to slip through his finger. He wasn't melting, but it only seemed like it was a matter of time.

"Come on little guy," Tom said, gentle trying to wake Bendy. "You can't give up now. Henry would be sad if you went away."

Bendy gave no response, only the slight rise and fall of his chest indicating that the toon was still alive. Tom was wondering what to do when he heard footsteps approaching.

"What's going on here?" Joey demanded as he came through the door, attacked by all the noise. Henry was right behind Joey with Allison and Sammy trailing behind as bodyguards.

"Bendy!" Henry said in worry, rushing over as soon as he spotted the downed toon. He knelt onto the floor and gently lifted the little ink demon, cradling him against his chest. Joey, on the other hand, was more focused on the Ink Machine.

"Is it finished?" Joey asked, looking at the machine with an excited gleam in his eye. "Is it finally ready?"

"Don't you think we have more important things to worry about you F #% #% A$$# #$!" Tom growled, somehow making whistles and bells sound threatening when he cursed.

"If that little inkblot can fall apart so easily, then he was less perfect than I thought," Joey replied dismissively, not even sparing a glance to his supposed star. "Besides, with the Ink Machine rebuilt and with Henry's help, I'll be able to make a new one, even a better one if I want to. There's no need to be concerned about it as it's fulfilled its purpose."

Tom could only gape at Joey in disgust and anger, having a hard believing that even Joey, who had killed hundreds of people to "perfect" the demon, can through him away so easily now. Henry, who had been more concerned about Bendy than Joey until now, froze at Joey's words. His head snapped and, if looks could kill, gave Joey a glare so deadly Joey would have been reduced to ashes on the spot.

"Bendy isn't just some glob ink that you can just through away," Henry said quietly, his voice so cold it sent shivers even down the brainwashed toons' spines. "You made him a living creature, yet you haven't treated him like anything more than a doll. I haven't seen him eat or drink since we've been your prisoners. Did you even let him sleep? You've been forcing him to drain himself of ink for your machine without any sort of rest! You claimed he was your "star" yet you don't even have the decency to be concerned when he's practically fallen apart doing what you wanted! If you don't let me take care of him then I will never help you create a replacement! Because as far as I'm concerned, he's irreplaceable."

"If you care so much for it then you can tend to it you're room," Joey replied, scoffing at Henry's heartfelt speech. "If you're successful, I'll even let you heal it with the Ink Machine. It would be easier to fix it than to create a new one."

Henry bit back the retort and insults he wished to sling at Joey, realizing this was an opportunity he couldn't afford to pass up. So he just held Bendy forward and hurried towards his room, Sammy trailing behind him. Once Henry had left, Joey turned to Tom who was glaring at him.

"Hurry up and finish up Tom," Joey said, smiling pleasantly. "The sooner the Ink Machine is complete, the sooner we can get started on my wondrous vision. Besides, I'm not the only one counting on it now."

Tom grumbled under his breath bu went to work, installing the last gear and making sure everything was running as it should. He hated the machine and what Joey planned to do with it, but he didn't have a choice. And if it could be used to heal Bendy, then at least it could do one good thing before it doomed the world.

Henry closed the door behind him as soon as he got to his room, glad that Sammy seemed content to stand guard on the other side. With luck, he won't realize what Henry was doing until it's too late.

"Henry? Wh- Bendy!" Linda said, surprised, and then concerned by the two coming into the room. "He's even paler than the last time I saw him… What happened? Is he going to be alright?"

"He's been using too much of his own ink without having a chance to recover," Henry replied, laying Bendy on the Bendy on the bed. "I'm going to heal him, damn the consequences."

"I'll gaud the door," Linda nodded in understanding, leaving Henry to his work.

Henry knew it was dangerous to us his ink as he was probably going to be caught, but Henry didn't care. Being too cautious had lead to Bendy in this state and he was not going to let lose Bendy now just because he was worried what Joey might do. He tilted Bendy's back and coaxed the toon's mouth open. Henry let golden flow into his hand and pour down Bendy's nonexistent throat.

Bendy was apparently even paler than he thought as he could see the golden ink begin to spread through the toons veins like molten fire. As the golden ink spread, Bendy's skin began to darken and return to its natural black. Henry only got a glimpse of the golden ink outlining a beating toon heart before the skin darkens enough for the veins to no longer be visible. With every passing second, the toon seemed to get healthier, but Henry could feel the tension rising. Every second he took meant a greater chance he could get caught, but he couldn't give up.

"Henry! Someone's coming!" Linda's warning was cut off as the door was forced open, but Henry didn't turn to see who it was. He just kept the golden ink flowing, only stopping when a hand grasped around his wrist and tanked it back.

"Well what do we have here," Joey said as he examined the golden ink still sitting in Henry's palm. "It seems you have been keeping secrets, old friend."


	19. Chapter 19

**Breaking Point**

"Really Henry, you should know better than keeping something like this from," Joey sighed in disappointment, shaking his head at Henry as he looked at the ink. "We're partners in this after all and something like this could change my plans. I knew you would be affected by your time in my pocket world, but I never imagined something like this. So what is it capable of? Is it only good for replenishing worn-out ink creatures or can it do more?"

Henry remained silent. He really didn't know much about what his golden ink could do as he hadn't really experimented with it outside of healing his toons, but even if he did he wouldn't want to tell Joey anything. Besides Henry was more concerned about what Joey planned to do next. Joey didn't like it when people defied him and while Henry could get way with more than most, he doubted something like this would go unpunished. That knowledge filled Henry with a cold dread.

"We'll have to figure that out later," Joey decided, letting go of Henry's hand. "I'm sure it has all sorts of potential uses, but there are more pressing matters to deal with. The Ink Machine has been repaired and now all that's left is to teat to see if my new ritual works. And because of this little… incident… I know just who to use as a subject."

Both Henry and Linda knew immediately what Joey had in mind and both acted fast. Linda stomped on Boris's foot, who was the one holding her, and the wolf toon let go with a pained yelp. At the same time Henry shoved Joey backward into Norman, scooping up the still unconscious Bendy and jumped over to Linda. They tried to barrel their way through the other toons and make their escape, but they didn't even past the bedroom doorway. The mind control toons reacted far faster than humans would and were able to block the couple's way.

There were just too many toons and they were too strong for the couple to break free. The unconscious Bendy was taken from Henry by Sammy and put back on the bed, Joey instructing the toon man to guard the little devil and to make sure he stayed there until Joey could examine him. The rest of the toons dragged Henry and Linda with them as everyone else made their way to the Ink Machine.

"What's going on?" Tom asked, concerned by all the noise he heard and seeing Linda and Henry held prisoner. He was unable to do anything though as Allison kept him from leaving his task of preparing the Ink Machine for use.

"Just a little disagreement is all," Joey replied, checking over the ritual circle under the nozzle of the machine. "Is everything ready?"

"As far as I can tell," Tom responded, still more concerned about Henry and Linda than what Joey was planning. "But there's no way to know for sure until we test it."

"Than it's a good thing I have a volunteer," Joey said waving the toons holding Linda over. Linda kicked and screamed as she was dragged to the center of the circle, Tom trying to aide her once he realized what was going on with horror. Unfortunately their efforts were in vain as Linda was tied up and left in the center of the circle.

"Joey please," Henry begged, desperately trying to find some spark of mercy in the madman before him. "Use me for the ritual. Turn me into a toon. Please, just spare Linda."

"Henry, we've been over this," Joey said, barely sparing a glance int the old animator's direction. "I'll need your help if something goes wrong. And once I know the ritual is perfect, you'll be able to join her as a toon. Won't that be wonderful? You'll never get sick or grow old, you'll be a happy couple for all eternity."

Henry cursed at Joey, but Joey paid him no mind, pulling out an old sheet of paper that had been tucked in the spellbook. Henry recognized the paper as an old sketch from when he had been working in the studio. It was a toon version of Linda, one Henry had drawn as a way to take a break from working on the cartoon. Henry had been pretty proud of it at the time but had forgotten all about it by the time he'd left the studio. He had no idea how Joey had it and he hated how it was now going to be used to reshape his wife.

Joey placed the paper over a symbol on the circle and began to chant from the book. The circle began to glow and one of the toons turned on the Ink Machine when Tom refused to. Ink began pouring out of the nozzles, coating Linda's back and dripping over her shoulders. The circle glowed brighter and the ink never left its borders even as more continued to pour from the machine.

Both Tom and Henry struggled against their captors, trying to stop the ritual. When Henry saw Joey pull out a knife, Henry shouted and begged, his heart filled with despair.

Meanwhile back in Henry and Linda's bedroom prison, the golden ink had continued to work its way through the little ink demon lying on the bed. One of his horns began to grow longer than the other and when the pie-cut eyes blinked up, they were the glowing gold of the Creator's Ink.

"…Henry..?"


	20. Chapter 20

**The Ink Devil Returns**

_Bendy was trapped though he wasn't quite sure where. Couldn't see anything, even when he believed he had his eyes opened and the blackness surrounding him was far to empty and consuming for it to be simply called dark. It was a void, one that he was sure he couldn't escape even if he knew how to try. It felt like something was keeping him here and firmly locked in this one spot. He wasn't even sure how he got here. He knew something had happened… something bad… that put him in this place but he couldn't recall any details…_

_That was something that was happening a lot since he got here… forgetting…_

_This void didn't seem content with just keeping him trapped. It was slowly consuming who he was, erasing him like words from a page. It was getting harder and harder to hold onto who he was, to remember those he cared about. There were moments where he couldn't even remember his name was Bendy and that terrified him._

_Sometimes he wondered what would happen once he faded completely? Would a new "Bendy" be rewritten on all those blank pages? A new toon with his old face? Or would he just be left blank? And empty shell to serve whatever purpose the one who put him in here had?_

_It was hard to keep fighting…_

_At some point, time was meaningless to him right now, little drops would come into the void. They would fill Bendy with warmth and sense of hope. They would restore little pieces of what had been taken and remind him of things he was forgetting. Though the little drops didn't last, they kept coming and made sure Bendy didn't fade completely._

_It took a few drops for Bendy to recognize it as his Creator's doing._

_There was another shift sometime later and the void slowly started to fade along with Bendy. Now, most people would consider it a good sign and hope that escape was near, but Bendy knew deep down that wasn't the case. Whatever was draining the void was going to finish Bendy off along with it. Bendy couldn't stop it and he could no longer endure it._

_He closed his eyes as he felt the last bits of himself begin to fade away…_

_Suddenly a stream began to fill the void, bringing Bendy back from the edge. He felt his Creator's love embrace him, refusing to let Bendy slip away without a fight. The stream continued to fill the void, restoring Bendy and pushing against the confines of the prison. Even when the stream was cut off, the golden light remained, swirling and expanding. Just as the liquid gold finished restoring Bendy completely, the void burst and the bonds dissolved._

_Bendy was free._

Even when Bendy was freed from the prison deep within his own mind, the little ink demon didn't wake up immediately. Instead, he gradually rose to consciousness as if he had been in a very deep sleep. He slowly blinked his eyes open, his vision blurry as he was still on the edge between waking and sleeping.

"…Henry..?" Bendy mumbled as he became more awake. His memories were still a bit hazy, but he was sure his Creator was near. Bendy pushed himself up into a sitting position, his body a strange mix of sluggish and charged with energy. He placed a hand on his head to help with a sudden dizziness and began looking around. He was on a bed and in a room, he didn't recognize and he could see Sammy's soul just outside the door.

Something about Sammy's soul looked funny, but he didn't have time to think about it as his gaze was drawn to the larger group of souls further back. It seemed to be his whole family and the Liar. The same weird thing that was going on with Sammy's soul was going on with most of the others but the more pressing issue was how close the Liar's soul was to Linda and how terrified both Linda and Henry were.

Memories of the situation came crashing back to Bendy and that combined which what he was seeing, drove him into action. He leaped forward, his body beginning to transform as he crashed the door. Sammy was knocked back and by the time the toon man recovered, Bendy was already rushing towards the group. The Ink Devil in his full glory burst into the room, causing everyone that could to freeze in shock and surprise. Bendy barely registered what was going on in the room, tackling the Liar before he could use the knife in his hand.

The two crashed onto the ritual circle and Bendy used his claws to break the circle lines. The magic that had been building up exploded outward, knocking everyone back and splashing ink over everything in the room. Henry recovered quicker than the dazed toons and hurried towards Linda and dragged her back, untying her as Bendy subdued Joey.

To say Bendy and Joey fought would be a gross exaggeration. While Joey was stubborn and willing to lash out with all he had, he was still a weak old man. Bendy was the strongest creature from the Studio, driven by his love for his family and energized by his Creator's love in return. It only took a moment for the Ink Devil to have Joey completely pinned. Once he had his prey on place, The Ink Devil plunged his had into his the Liar's chest, reaching beyond the physical and immediately latching onto the vile soul within. Bendy started pulling the soul out when his Creator's voice made him pause.

"Bendy! Don't!" Henry said fearfully, looking towards his toon. The other toons were standing around looking confused. Whether the backlash of magic had broken the mind control or they just didn't know what to do without more instructions was unclear, but the point was they didn't seem like they'd be doing anything for a minute. That left Henry plenty of time to deal with what Bendy was doing right now.

"You don't have to devour his soul Bendy," Henry said, focused solely on his creation. "We can find some other way to deal with him."

Truth was, Henry didn't care if Joey's soul was eaten or not. The man had caused far too many deaths and brought to much pain to his family for Henry to feel that kind of mercy towards him. What he really cared about is what eating a soul might do to Bendy. Henry knew the little ink demon had been fighting against that craving this whole time and his little toon had been terrified he'd slip up at some point, especially after what happened with Tom. Henry would not let Bendy become everything he feared, especially not because of someone like Joey.

"I have to," Bendy replied, keeping a firm grip on the Liar's soul. Memories and thoughts flashed before Bendy's eyes of the evil Joey had done. Bendy knew that if they didn't finish off Joey for good, he would just come after their family again. Even with his soul partially removed from his body, the Liar was still thinking of ways he could punish Henry and his family for this defiance. Bendy had to do this, or they would never be safe.

Henry was going to argue but paused as he realized what emotions he was feeling from Bendy. While there was anger aimed a Joey, that wasn't the driving force. Instead, it was a desire to protect his family and the calm acceptance that this needed to be done. This wasn't just a knee jerk reaction made in the midst of a fight for survival, but a purposeful decision. Henry didn't really understand the reasons behind Bendy's choice, but he could choose to trust his little Ink Demon.

Henry gave Bendy a nod to show his support.

That was the Ink Devil needed to finish removing the Liar's soul. The black glowing orb fits perfectly into Bendy's hand and the Ink Devil couldn't help but lick his lips in anticipation. The toon part of himself said he should just release the soul, letting it go to whatever waited beyond this life. But the demon part couldn't resist and the Ink Devil brought the souls up to his mouth and swallowed it whole. Beneath the Ink Devil, the Liar's body released its last breath.


	21. Final Chapter

**Safe at Last**

Despite all of Bendy's attempts to control and contain his darker demonic instincts, he couldn't ignore them completely. As such, there had been several times he had wondered what would happen if he gave in to his desire to consume a soul. Would it give him energy? Would it feel like swallowing a ball of lightning, warm and tingling? Did souls have a taste? If so, would it be as vile as the soul it belonged to? Would it taste good? Would he like it? Would he want more?

Those questions would haunt Bendy late at night, especially if he had encountered a particularly corrupt soul and it had taken all his willpower not to eat it. But never in Bendy's wildest fantasies would have prepared Him for when he finally gave in and ate a soul.

The moment the Liar's soul passed his teeth, warmth started filling the Ink Devil's being. The soul left a pleasant tingling buzzing sensation as it passed down and settled comfortably in his stomach, filling a hunger the Ink Devil didn't even realize he had been so desperate to state. And it did have a taste, somehow both the most savory meal and the sweetest dessert. How could the Ink Devil have gone so long without this?

The Ink Devil was starring off in a daze as he savored the wonderful sensation of his first soul while Tom and Henry were busy with the others. The moment Joey's soul was taken and his body died, the magic keeping the toon's minds enslaved last the source it was meant to be tied to. Without that anchor, the already damaged spell unraveled completely, leaving behind very confused and slightly panicked toons. Henry tried his best to give a short summary of the situation, but most of the toons were either still too dazed by their recent mind control or freaking out about their altered appearance to really grasp what Henry was saying. The only piece of information that got their attention was the fact that the Liar was dead.

The instant they heard that they looked towards Joey's body and all of them sagged with a sense of relief. Toons started hugging each other in happiness and a few even cheered. Tom and Allison shared a passionate kiss and even Henry had to admit he was glad Joey was gone. Henry never thought he'd be glad to see his once friend dead, even after all he went through in the Studio, but now that he was gone and everything he had just put Henry's family through, Henry couldn't deny the sense of comfort and safety he felt. No longer would Joey's shadow be hanging over them, threatening to take away the happiness they'd built. He would never hurt them again.

Henry and Linda embraced, glad that this most recent nightmare was over and giving Henry a chance to look Linda over. She still had a lot of ink on her, though most of it had dripped off and the rest was starting to dry on her. And it seemed that even though the ritual had been interrupted, Linda hadn't escaped completely unchanged. Her skin was incredibly pale, nearly white, and she moved with just a bit more fluidity than was humanly possible. At certain angles, Henry would see a dull yellow glow coming from her eyes, an effect Henry had seen on his own when he looked in a mirror. She was like him now, mostly human with a touch of ink flowing through them. It was too early to say what the full extent of the transformation was, for both of them really, but they would work it out together.

But that would have to wait for later. Right now, everyone was exhausted from this adventure and they all wanted to get out of here. Henry used Joey's phone to leave an anonymous tip that Joey had passed away and Tom quickly took apart and disabled the Ink Machine. Once that was done, Henry snapped Bendy out of his daze to make a portal home. As they were leaving, Henry made the split-second decision to take the spellbook Joey had been using, determining it was better to keep it himself than risking it falling into the wrong hands.

Once everyone was through the portal, they all piled on and around the couch, unwilling to be alone right now. Once everyone was settled, Henry once again explained what happened in more detail. The toons were dismayed to hear they had once again fallen under the Liar's control and were even happier that they never had to worry about it again. They were also concerned by their altered forms, even Moreno when they realized it didn't seem that stable. Faint scars would reappear and the vanish and joints shift from pure rubber hose to something slightly human. Henry couldn't tell if it was the spell wearing off or a side effect of being splashed with fresh ink from the Ink Machine, letting the toons have some in unconscious control over their appearance. Either way, Henry promised to help them find and keep the form they were most comfortable with.

With everyone needing time to process and recover, everyone just started to fall asleep in the living room. They all knew they had a lot to deal with and figure out, but they had all survived. They were completely free of the Liar and they were able to sleep peacefully with that knowledge. The morning was sure to bring more challenges, but they'd deal with as they always do… together.


End file.
